New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones did not build on the performance and productivity of his first NFL season in his second.

How does the former Alabama All-American get back on track for his third NFL season?

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“I tried to follow a college-like offseason program,” Jones said on Wednesday. “Stay on it really early, a lot less vacations and just work really hard like all the other guys are doing. …

“But it’s really just identifying where you can get better at. Like I said, confidence comes from years of practice and doing well and also not doing well. Sometimes the most confident people come from a year where they might not have been their best, and I feel like that’s where I’m at. We all feel like that, so we’re all hungry. Confidence comes with time, but it’s also something that you can look back on, too, not just worrying about things that happened in the past, but also focusing on the future.”

Jones started every game as New England posted 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 contests because of an ankle injury.

As a rookie, 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.

The downturn in Year 2 hasn’t shaken Jones’ confidence for Year 3.

“I think that really great people are formed through ups and downs,” Jones said. “Sometimes, speaking for myself, my sports career, I’ve always been on really good, winning teams, and that’s what this place has been. I’m just learning from all the things. That’s all I took from last year: It’s a learning experience, and I think I learned a lot, which is really important. I was a second-year player at the time, and all that can do is help me in the future. I think it can help our team, my teammates, my coaches and the experiences that we’re going to go through. It’s the NFL, it’s the hardest league there is and everyone’s really good, so you’ve got to bring your best not only every year, but really, most importantly, every day. We’re just focusing on that.”

Jones and most of his teammates were on field on Wednesday for the third OTA of the Patriots’ offseason program.

The final portion of New England’s offseason program was supposed to include 10 days of organized team practice activity, usually referred to as OTAs. However, the NFL took away two of the Patriots’ days on the field for violating a league rule in the previous phase of the offseason plan.

New England has five OTAs remaining, with the next one on Friday, and will have its mandatory minicamp on June 12-14 before breaking for the summer.

“I think Mac works hard every day,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said about Jones on Wednesday. “He puts in a lot of time both in the weight room, in the classroom, works hard on the field. His work ethic is really good and hasn’t changed.”

The blame for Jones’ downturn in 2022 didn’t fall completely – or perhaps even mainly – at his feet. After Jones worked with veteran offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels in his rookie season, New England didn’t have a titled offensive coordinator last season after McDaniels left to become the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Former Patriots defensive coordinator and Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia called New England’s offensive plays in 2022, and the team plunged from sixth in the NFL in scoring in 2021 to 17th last season.

The Patriots have an offensive coordinator for the 2023 season after Belichick hired Bill O’Brien from Alabama, where he held the same position. O’Brien and Jones did not overlap with the Crimson Tide.

“OB’s been around, and he’s taken a lot of good things from each stop,” Jones said. “I feel like, for me, it’s just being a sponge. Whatever quarterback he’s coached, I can learn from, whether that’s Bryce (Young) or Deshaun (Watson) or at Penn State. He has such great experience in this league and in football and in the football world. It’s like a walking dictionary. Just pick his brain and see the game how he sees it, how I see it, and then come together and mesh to create a really good offense.”

Jones has become accustomed to changes in his offensive coordinator, so he had no apprehension about learning another playbook. What Jones is working hard at is building a strong relationship with O’Brien.

“I think in college — I always reference college, right?” Jones said. “Didn’t really play early on; just got a chance to learn. But I learned through some really good coaches – Sark (Steve Sarkisian), (Brian) Daboll, (Mike) Locksley, (Lane) Kiffin, everybody. I actually had a different coordinator pretty much every year there. What I took from that is you learn from each one of them. You take the really good things, and you add that to your repertoire.

“I think with OB, obviously, that needs to happen, and we’re going to work toward that. There’s a lot of familiarity, but it’s a new relationship still. We’re just working on that trust. That’s what I care about. I’m very much a trustworthy person, and that’s what we’re trying to build.”

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