Alabama Football: Mac Jones making NFL debut tonight

Alabama football fans will see a familiar face on Thursday

While Alabama football fans are used to seeing Mac Jones on a Saturday, he will be back on the field to begin his NFL career this Thursday. As the backup quarterback for the New England Patriots, Jones should get plenty of reps in their first preseason game against the Washington Football Team.

The preseason is played for two main reasons. It gives younger players a chance to experience the NFL without impacting your record, and it gives depth players a chance to prove that they are worth keeping around before rosters are trimmed for the regular season. For an experienced veteran like Cam Newton, there is little to be gained from the preseason. That’s why we should expect plenty of Mac Jones over the next three weeks.

The last time Jones was taking snaps in a live game, he won a national title with Alabama football. He threw for 464 yards and scored five passing touchdowns, cementing his place among the other Crimson Tide greats. Now, he is trying to prove that he is ready to be a franchise quarterback for the Patriots.

He will be facing off against an experienced defensive line. Washington will have one of the best defenses in the NFL this year, and plenty of former Alabama football players star on that side of the ball. Even if some veterans sit out, there will be plenty of talented players to test Mac Jones in his NFL debut.

If Jones wants to win the starting job, he needs to show something over the next three weeks. This will be his first test against an actual opponent, and he can get the conversation going if he performs well. He deserves a chance to start, but he still has to earn the job over an experienced quarterback.

Jones hopes to have a long professional career, and this is his first step to achieving that dream.