Rob Gronkowski claims Mac Jones is 'not respected' in New England amid his struggle for form...  as reports claim the Patriots QB has lost 'vast majority' of support in the locker room

Mac Jones is 'not respected' in New England and should ask to be released by the Patriots, according to team legend Rob Gronkowski. 

'He's not respected there,' Gronkowski said about Jones on Wednesday's Up & Adams show amid his struggles for the Patriots this season. 

'I think Mac Jones should ultimately, even right now, should just go ask for his release.

'If you're talking to me about what he should do, ask for his release and then if it's granted, he should go sign with the Cleveland Browns and start a new career right then and there.' 

Gronkowski's damning comments seemingly go hand-in-hand with a report that claims Jones has lost the 'vast majority' of support in the Patriots locker room.

According to Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald, one team source estimated that at least 80 per cent of the Patriots' locker room is out on Jones. Another said the 'vast majority' of players are done with him.

'The lack of belief spreads to both sides of the ball,' Callahan's report says.

Jones was benched for the third time this season during the Patriots' 10-6 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, only a quarter after his offensive coordinator was seen berating him for nearly throwing an interception.

While speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick avoided giving a direct answer when asked if Jones would remain his starter.

'We have a lot of things to work on this week as a team. We'll work through those,' Belichick said.

'That's what we are going to do this week.'

Running back Ezekiel Elliott also gave a cryptic response when asked if the team would benefit from a change at QB by replying: 'I don't know.'

The struggling QB also said during a recent radio appearance that he hasn't been told if he will start the game against the New York Giants next week.

'No, we haven't talked about that,' Jones said. 'Really just, today we watched the game film and kind of talked about the plans for the bye week.'

'We have practice [Wednesday] so, just see how it goes there and the bye week is a great time to work on things that you can do better. So that's what I'm going to do.' 

In his third season since being selected as no. 15 overall pick in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, Jones has regressed tremendously since leading the Patriots to the playoffs as a rookie.

This year Jones is 212-324 with 10 touchdowns and 10 interceptions after leading New England to a dreadful 2-8 record.

The tumultuous season has also brought the future of Belichick into question, with a recent report stating the coach already knows which team he would like to make a move to next season ahead of a potential parting of ways in New England.