NFL fines Mac Jones for unflagged unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in Bills loss

Christmas is rapidly approaching, and we are officially in the season of giving. Apparently, NFL referees were in a very giving mood last weekend in the Week 13 games — the wrong kind of giving. The league dished out over $100k in fines from unsportsmanlike penalties, with a number of those coming on plays that were unflagged at the time. Former Alabama star Mac Jones was on the receiving end of an unsportsmanlike conduct fine in the Patriots’ loss to the Buffalo Bills.

No flag was thrown on the play. After he was sacked, Jones flicked the ball and hit A.J. Epenesa. He was fined $10,609 on Saturday, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. If you want to see the play that he was fined for, you can check out the video below. It seems like a very mild toss of the football after Jones was frustrated from being sacked.

On 2nd & Goal, AJ Epenesa 13-yd sack of Mac Jones#Bills 24 #Patriots 7 4th pic.twitter.com/xzoWD2ZIHV

— Sᴘᴏʀᴛs 24/7 (@Sports_24x7_) December 2, 2022

As mentioned above, the list of NFL players that were fined in Week 13 was quite extensive. If you want to see the entire list of players that were handed out fines by the league, you can check that out here.

Over $100K in fines for unsportsmanlike conduct in Week 13:

Ja’Marr Chase $15,914
A.J. Brown $13,261
Ezekiel Elliott $13,261
Dak Prescott $13,261
Mac Jones $10,609
DK Metcalf $10,609
Bradley Chubb $10,609
Jon Feliciano $10,609
Alexander Mattison $6,503
Peyton Hendershot $3,944 pic.twitter.com/oqZ3LwLM7P

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) December 10, 2022

It’s been a frustrating year for Jones, but maybe it gives him some comfort knowing that he wasn’t the only player that was fined. The Patriots are in desperate need of a real offensive coordinator, not Matt Patricia.

It’s been a rough year for Mac Jones

Mac Jones stats have been awful this year after finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting last season. When pressured this year, Jones has only completed 37 percent of his passes (31st in the league). He’s also only averaged 2.9 yards per attempt this year while pressured, ranking him 34th in the league in that category.

Then, to top it all off, Jones has tossed five interceptions while being pressured, tying him for the most in the league. It’s pretty rare that you see that kind of regression from year one to year two at any position, especially from a quarterback that finished second in Rookie of the Year voting.

Jones had every right to voice his frustration with Patriots’ “offensive coordinator” Matt Patricia at the end of the Bills-Patriots game. New England’s offensive line hasn’t helped Jones at all this season. Neither has Bill Belichick or the rest of the coaching staff by deciding to not hire a legitimate offensive coordinator. It wouldn’t be surprising at all to see the Patriots make some moves this off-season with their coaching staff. It simply doesn’t make any sense as to why they didn’t hire one in before the 2022 season in the first place.