Patriots TE Jonnu Smith turning the page on his miserable outing against the Saints

Jonnu Smith knows he had a terrible game.

He’s not blaming Mac Jones. The Patriots tight end pointed the arrow square at himself for dropping at least three catchable balls in Sunday’s loss to the Saints.

“You know I got to have a certain level of honesty with myself in the mirror, man. But the great thing about it is I have another opportunity,” Smith told reporters during a video conference Monday. “I didn’t put my best product and myself out there yesterday. I know that, the whole world knows that. But, you know, I know the player I am, I’m confident in the player I am, and I’m just looking forward to moving forward.”

Smith, who signed a lucrative four-year, $50 million contract with $31.5 million guaranteed, has gotten off to a rough start in the first three games.He’s caught just 10 passes for 74 yards, with no touchdowns.

Smith said he felt comfortable in the Patriots system. Asked if he was on the same page with rookie Mac Jones, especially on the ball that went off his hands to Saints defender Malcolm Jenkins for a pick-six, Smith didn’t put any of that on Jones.

“Mac threw a catchable ball. Mac did everything right,” said Smith. “I just gotta make that play that I know I can make, and I will when the opportunity presents itself.”

Smith said what “eats me up most” is not helping put the the Patriots in a position to win.

The tight end plans on bouncing back, starting with Sunday’s game against the Bucs.

“You can’t dwell on the week prior, you know what I mean? You just gotta have enough mental toughness to keep moving forward no matter what was the result of last week because it’s a long season,” he said. “There’s a lot of football left to be played. You just have to be able to turn that page quickly.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/39FQTyX