Patriots Bench Mac Jones for Bailey Zappe in First Half vs. Bears on ‘MNF’

After taking over as the Patriots' starter for the past three games, Bailey Zappe appears poised to continue leading the offense going forward.

The rookie quarterback took the reins back from Mac Jones early in the Patriots’ matchup against the Bears on Monday Night Football after a sluggish start across the team’s first three drives. 

Jones, appearing in his first game since suffering an ankle injury in Week 3, started the matchup and mustered up two quick three-and-outs before getting intercepted by rookie safety Jaquan Brisker to end a 10-play, 41-yard drive. Jones’s pick came as the raucous crowd at Gillette Stadium began chanting “Zappe” after Chicago jumped out to an early 10–0 lead.

After the Bears punted following a three-and-out of their own, Patriots coach Bill Belichick made the call to pull Jones for Zappe, much to the delight of the Patriots faithful. It didn’t take long for the new fan favorite to inject some life into the offense as Zappe completed all three of his passes for 54 yards and a 30-yard touchdown toss to receiver Jakobi Meyers.

At the time of his exit, Jones completed three of his six pass attempts for 13 yards and rushed three times for 24 yards.

While it remains to be seen if the change ends up being permanent, Pats fans eager to crown Zappe as the next chosen one may want to temper expectations, at least for now. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported prior to kickoff that it would “not be a surprise” to see Jones, a 2021 Pro Bowler as a rookie, and Zappe play in primetime.

Still, the excitement brought on by the QB change both on and off the field indicates the possibility of a brewing QB controversy in the coming weeks as “Zappe-Mania” appears to be catching on in full force in Foxborough.

Zappe, a fourth round pick out of Western Kentucky, was inactive for the first three weeks before stepping in for an injured Brian Hoyer in the 27–24 Week 4 loss to the Packers. Entering Week 7, the 23-year-old led the Pats to blowout wins over the Lions and Browns in his first career starts, tallying 188 yards, one touchdown and an interception in Week 5 and 309 yards and two TDs in Week 6, respectively.