People forget that he’s still a rookie

Hunter Henry offers perspective on Mac Jones originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Mac Jones had a few rookies firsts in Saturday’s 27-17 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, including his first red zone interception.

Late in the first half, Jones had the Patriots on the brink of scoring their first points of the game when Colts All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard stepped in front of tight end Hunter Henry and came down with a pick, ensuring New England would be blanked in the first half for the first time since 2016.

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Henry, who caught a game-high six passes for 77 yards and two touchdowns, offered some perspective on Jones when asked about what happened on Leonard’s pick after the game.

“He’s a very elite player. He made a really, really good play,” Henry said of Leonard, adding, “Mac will see it and learn from it. He’s still young. I think people forget, he’s still a rookie. He’s still gotta learn all these things.”

Despite the up-and-down showing from Jones, he still surpassed 3,000 yards through the air for the season — the first rookie in franchise history to do so — and threw the two more touchdown passes to get to 18 on the season, moving him closer to the rookie franchise record of 21 set by Butch Songin back in 1960.