Playing outside of the division could prove just as challenging, as New England’s non-divisional schedule is nothing to sneeze at. The Patriots open the season against MVP runner-up Jalen Hurts and the Super Bowl runner-up Eagles. Later in the season, New England plays conference opponents Justin Herbert and the Chargers and Patrick Mahomes and the Super Bowl champion Chiefs — just a small sample of the growing group of young and dangerous QBs in the AFC.
“You literally cannot take a week off. I mean this is the NFL anyways, you can get beat on any given Sunday, but in the AFC alone, we’re just stacked,” Phillips said. “If you look at our schedule this year, it’s just stacked with a bunch of quarterbacks, a bunch of skill players who can take a slant for 80 yards. So we’ve got to make sure we’re dialed in each and every week.”
As for the Patriots’ own quarterback plans, Mac Jones is expected to remain the starter as of now, despite persistent rumors speculating a change in the status quo after Jones’ down year. When asked by Yam how firm the QB’s grip on his position is, Phillips was hesitant to enter the fray.
“Man, you’re trying to get me in trouble,” Phillips said. “One thing I’ll say, and pretty much the only thing I’ll say is that I’m not in the meetings with them, so I don’t know what’s going on over there, but I will say that Mac is competing, all those guys are competing, and we’re going to ride with whoever’s out there. That’s a decision that’s up to (coach) Bill (Belichick) and those guys on offensive side, but we’re rocking with [Jones] either way and we’re just kind of worried about the defensive side.”