Alabama Football: 5 takeaways from Tide’s win vs. Notre Dame

Takeaways from Alabama football’s win in the CFP semifinal

4. Mac Jones is more mobile than we thought

When people think of Mac Jones, they mention his accuracy. They might talk about his leadership. One thing they won’t say is that he is a mobile threat. However, he helped change the narrative against Notre Dame’s defense.

The Fighting Irish wanted to flush Jones out of the pocket, and they had some success against the Tide offensive line. That is only half of the equation, though. They then needed to wrap up Mac Jones for a loss. This is where they struggled.

Jones was able to manipulate the pocket and keep his eyes downfield. He has always been great within the pocket, but he showed his athleticism when he scrambled outside and still made smart plays. Some were conversions, and others were actually scrambles for gains. No one thought Mac Jones was capable of this, but he proved all of us wrong.

If Mac Jones can consistently scramble and still make plays, there is virtually no weakness to the Alabama football offense. This was the one way that teams were hoping to exploit Jones, and he showed a new ability to use his legs. He’s no Jalen Hurts, but he doesn’t have to be. He just needs to avoid sacks and gain positive yardage on a consistent basis.