ESPN refutes online speculation that its SkyCam led to costly Mac Jones interception

Early in the New England Patriots’ loss on Monday Night Football, Mac Jones threw a bad interception on a play he should have thrown the ball away. He was benched for the remainder of the night following the throw. However, following the game, there was speculation online about whether or not ESPN’s equipment got in the way of Jones’ pass.

The ball that Mac Jones threw was a lob, and from an angle, it appears that the ball hit the wire for ESPN’s SkyCam. Had that been seen on the field or in replay, then the play should have been stopped there. It wouldn’t have been an interception. Hypothetically, Jones wouldn’t have been benched in a decision that could alter the future of the Patriots.

You can view the video that set off an online debate, here.

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However, ESPN says that Mac Jones’ pass did not make contact with SkyCam. The network released a statement about the incident:

“This pass from Mac Jones did not hit ESPN’s SkyCam wiring. This video creates a false impression, but in reality the SkyCam wire was more than 15 feet above the ball and our SkyCam system followed all NFL protocols.”

ESPN statement: “This pass from Mac Jones did not hit ESPN’s SkyCam wiring. This video creates a false impression, but in reality the SkyCam wire was more than 15 feet above the ball and our SkyCam system followed all NFL protocols.” https://t.co/vKMpQp4xOz

— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) October 26, 2022

Rookie Bailey Zappe replaced Mac Jones. In his first two drives, he led the Patriots to two touchdowns and the lead. However, things fell apart from there. They didn’t score again and Zappe threw two interceptions in a blowout loss to the Bears.

Now, the question is who is going to start next week for the Patriots. Does head coach Bill Belichick go back to Mac Jones, who has struggled with injuries and turnovers in his second NFL season, or does he go with the rookie? To this point, he’s refused to give much insight into what he wants to do and Patriots fans will likely have to wait until kickoff to find out who is starting.

Troy Aikman expects Mac Jones to be the starter

Following the Monday Night Football loss, commentator Troy Aikman said that he expects Mac Jones to be the starter moving forward.

“Not to say that this doesn’t bother him,” Troy Aikman said. “He’s a competitor. The reason he’s gotten to this level and the reason he won a national championship there at Alabama is because he’s a great competitor. Any competitor would be upset with not (being) given the opportunity to come off that interception and see what he can do. But he’s gonna say all the right things and he’s gonna mean it. He’ll work hard this week and He’ll be ready for his next opportunity. He gets it. If anyone’s trained to handle something like this, it’s Mac Jones.”