Jones had a successful rookie season, leading the Patriots to a playoff berth and earning Pro Bowl honors.

He added his name to the Alabama record book with a 94-yard touchdown pass to Jaylen Waddle, the second-longest in school history, in a win against Louisiana.

[20][21][22][23][19] Jones served as the starting quarterback near the end of the 2019 season after Tua Tagovailoa suffered a severe hip injury.

[37] Alabama was selected to take on Notre Dame in the 2021 Rose Bowl semifinal game, where Jones threw four touchdown passes en route to a 31–14 win.

[38] Alabama would go on to win the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship game against the Ohio State Buckeyes 52–24, with Jones throwing 5 touchdown passes.

[62] The following week, Jones made his Sunday Night Football debut against the defending Super Bowl LV champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers and former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

[63] Jones had his first fourth quarter comeback and game-winning drive during Week 5 against the Houston Texans when he helped the Patriots rally from a 22–9 deficit to win 25–22.

[64] Two weeks later, Jones won his first home game during a 54–13 rout of the Jets, throwing for 307 yards and two touchdowns before backup Brian Hoyer relieved him in the final minutes.

[65] The Week 7 victory began a seven-game winning streak for the Patriots, with Jones completing 69.4% of his passes for 1,397 yards, nine touchdowns, and two interceptions.

Jones also became the first NFL rookie quarterback to have a completion percentage over 80 in consecutive games, which he obtained in victories over the Cleveland Browns and Atlanta Falcons.

[68] New England's winning streak ended with consecutive losses against the Indianapolis Colts and Bills, which saw Jones record two interceptions in each game.

[73] Jones became the first Patriots rookie quarterback to start a playoff game with his wild card appearance against the Bills, throwing for 232 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions in the 47–17 loss.

[74] For his performance in his first season, Jones was named to the 2021 PFWA All-Rookie Team and finished second in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting behind Ja'Marr Chase.

[81] The injury was diagnosed as an ankle sprain that forced him to miss New England's next three matchups, during which the team went 2–1 under rookie Bailey Zappe.

[82][83] Jones returned for the Week 7 Monday Night Football matchup with the Chicago Bears, but after going three-and-out on his first two drives and throwing an interception on his third, he was benched for Zappe in the 33–14 defeat.

[85] He also had an interception returned for a touchdown by cornerback Michael Carter II, but a roughing the passer penalty on defensive end John Franklin-Myers negated the play.

[87] Jones had his strongest performance of the season in the Thanksgiving Day game against the Minnesota Vikings, throwing for a career-high 382 yards and two touchdowns, but the Patriots lost 33–26.

[94] In the season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles, Jones finished the game with 35 completions of 54 attempts for 316 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception in 25–20 defeat.

[97] In Week 4 against the Dallas Cowboys, Jones was replaced by Zappe after his poor performance, posting 39.9 rating and having three turnovers in a 3–38 blowout loss.

[104] In his final game with the Patriots against the New York Giants, Jones completed 12 of 21 passes for 89 yards and two Interceptions before being replaced again by Zappe at halftime.

[112] Jones was nicknamed "the Joker" in college for his habit of laughing with his mouth open and having some fun in the locker room with his teammates.