New England quarterback Mac Jones has a “clean slate” in 2023, said Bill O’Brien, the Patriots offensive coordinator, on Tuesday.

The former Alabama quarterback and the former Crimson Tide offensive coordinator got to work on Monday, when the NFL team’s offseason program started.

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“I think the big thing for us right now is everybody’s starting with a clean slate,” O’Brien said about Jones when the coach met with reporters on Tuesday. “I think that every year is different. I think this year is no different than any other year relative to each year in the NFL is different, so what you did in the past, whether it’s a player or a coach or anybody in the organization, really has no bearing on what happens moving forward.

“We just started yesterday, and we’re looking forward to having a good Phase 1 and then a good Phase 2 and a good Phase 3, and that’s kind of what it’s all about.”

Jones started every game as New England reached a 10-7 record and went to the postseason as a wild-card qualifier in his rookie season in 2021. In 2022, the Patriots went 8-9, with a 6-8 mark in games started by Jones, who missed three games because of an ankle injury.

In his rookie season, Jones went to the Pro Bowl as he completed 352-of-521 passes for 3,801 yards with 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. In his second season, Jones completed 288-of-442 passes for 2,997 yards with 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

New England dropped from sixth in the NFL in scoring in 2021 to 17th in 2022 after the departure of Josh McDaniels, who left his post as the Patriots offensive coordinator to become the Las Vegas Raiders head coach last offseason.

New England coach Bill Belichick did not name an offensive coordinator to replace McDaniels last year.

For the 2022 season, former Patriots special-teams coordinator, Alabama assistant coach and New York Giants head coach Joe Judge served as offensive assistant and quarterbacks coach, and former New England defensive coordinator and Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia called the plays, although his titles were senior football advisor and offensive-line coach.

In January, New England hired O’Brien.

O’Brien joined Alabama the season after Jones left the Tide. Jones was an All-American for Alabama’s undefeated CFP national championship team in 2020.

“The time at Alabama when I first got hired, he was there getting ready for the draft,” O’Brien said of Jones. “I basically met him. He talked to me about the generalities of the offense, and that was about it.

“I think this time period here starting yesterday, this is the time where you really get to know all the players.”

O’Brien is starting his second stint on the New England staff. He was an offensive assistant in 2007, wide-receivers coach in 2008, quarterbacks coach from 2009 through 2011 and offensive coordinator in 2011. Between the Patriots and Alabama, O’Brien worked as the head coach for Penn State and the Houston Texans.

Matt Groh, New England’s director of player personnel, said O’Brien’s experience had been a resource for his work in evaluating NFL free agents and preparing for the NFL Draft on April 27-29.

“Certainly through free agency, whether it was through his draft prep with the Texans, and then here the last couple of years at Alabama, he knows those players very, very well,” Groh said. “And then he’s in the SEC, where there’s a lot of good players, so to be able to pick his brain on certain things – look, I certainly don’t have all the answers. Trying to find out as much information about these guys going into the draft as we can, and coach O’Brien, he’s a wealth of knowledge and has been a really, really good friend and resource for myself.”

O’Brien cited several reasons for his return to New England.

“The big thing about coming back here was to come back and work for a great organization, a great owner, a great head coach,” O’Brien said. “I’m from here. My family lives here. My wife went to Boston College. I’m very familiar with the area, so all of that played into our decision as a family to come back here. I think that was the big thing. It wasn’t about one person. It was about the whole package, so to speak.”

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.