Jaguars' Doug Pederson Shades Patriots Over Mac Jones' Development amid NFL Preseason

Mac Jones had an impressive preseason with the Jacksonville Jaguars, but head coach Doug Pederson said he still has some work to do.

Pederson also shaded the New England Patriots, Jones' former team.

"Mac has played extremely well in the last couple of weeks and has really bought into what we do," Pederson said, per Mike Reiss of ESPN. "He'll still revert back to his Patriots ways every now and then, and we have to remind him he's in Jacksonville. But he's done a good job managing and running the offense, getting everybody involved. He sees the field well, throws a good ball, so he's done a good job."

There's no question Jones struggled when he was with the Patriots, and Pederson seemed to be taking a shot at the way he developed while in New England during the first three years of his career. Jones' worst season with the Patriots came last year when he had 2,120 passing yards, 10 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, and it was clear he needed a change of scenery.

Being on a new team has seemed to pay dividends early on. In three preseason games, Jones had 421 passing yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions, leading the Jags to three dominant wins over the Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons.

Jones likely won't get any reps as Jacksonville's starter as Trevor Lawrence holds that title, but he could still make a few appearances throughout the season to continue developing.

If Jones' preseason is truly a mark of how he's developed over the offseason, he could have teams looking to make him a QB1 when he becomes a free agent next offseason.