Bill Belichick: Playing Both Mac Jones, Bailey Zappe ‘Part Of Plan’ For Patriots
FOXBORO — When New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones envisioned his return to the lineup after a three-week absence, he certainly believed his outing would last longer than three offensive series.
Yet, the Pats team captain was indeed chased from New England’s 33-14 Week 7 loss to the Chicago Bears early in the second quarter. In front of a hostile hometown crowd chanting “Zappe,” Jones forced his final pass of the night (intended for tight end Jonnu Smith), which was acrobatically intercepted with one hand by Bears defensive back Jaquan Brisker.
On the Pats next possession, Jones retreated to the bench as rookie Bailey Zappe entered the game.
While many considered such a move to be a bit premature, Patriots coach Bill Belichick revealed that it was “part of the plan all along” for both quarterbacks to see the field on Monday night.
“I told the quarterbacks that we were going to play both of them,” Belichick told reporters postgame. “And that’s what we did.”
Jones’ stat line is unlikely to be one which he fondly remembers. The 24-year-old finished the night completing just three of his six passes for 13 yards and the interception. Jones struggled to find his receivers downfield and forced several passes (including his interception) in his first game action since suffering a high ankle sprain in the closing moments of New England’s Week 3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
However, Belichick made it clear that Jones’ removal was not a punitive benching.
“That’s not what it was … you can write whatever you want to write,” he said. “That’s not what it was.”
Shortly after Belichick provided his explanation, Jones corroborated his head coach’s account, advising that he too was aware of the Pats’ plan at the position.
“Just part of the plan,” Jones said. “I think Coach [Belichick] obviously did a really good job explaining it to me. I knew what the plan was … the timing is the timing, but we were on the same page. There’s no hard feelings or anything. I wish I played better while I was in there, but hopefully I’ll have a chance to do that in practice and kind of earn that back and then apply it in the game.”
Apparently, the Pats plan at quarterback began to take shape throughout their week of practice. With several questions continuing to surround Jones’ health, Belichick and the team’s coaching staff decided that both Jones and Zappe would at least split time at the position against the Bears.
“I think we had a good plan, as always, just to go throughout the week and figure out what we want to do for the game,” Jones continued. “Coach Belichick was very good about communication and felt like I was good to play, and we had a good plan there, and obviously I didn’t play well enough there.”
And while Jones did not see the field again after his three series, he likely would have if the game was still competitive.
“He would have gone back in,” Belichick said of Jones. “The score got out of hand. I didn’t think that was the right thing to do.”
With the game out of reach, Zappe remained in the role for the remainder of the game. The rookie led his team on two consecutive scoring drives on his first two possessions. Pacing New England to a 14-10 lead into the second quarter. Unfortunately, Zappe and the Patriots offense was unable to muster another point. Zappe’s early success gave way to struggles which seemed eerily similar to those which Jones suffered in the first half. He finished 14-of-22 for 185 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
Despite not getting the starting nod, Zappe insisted that his preparations remained the same as the previous two weeks, in which he led the Pats to a 2-0 record as their starting quarterback.
“I prepare like I have every other week,” Zappe said while speaking with reporters after the game.
“If that decision was made for me to go in, then I was going to go out there and do the best for my team,”
As for his second-half difficulties, Zappe realizes that he must act quickly to correct his mistakes. “Just got to get better. Can’t fall off like I did. I’ve got to make some throws. I’ve got to make better decisions on certain things,” Zappe said. “My job was to go in there and get the ball to my playmakers. I need to do a better job of that going into next week.”
Ultimately, New England’s quarterbacks and head coach seemed to be on the same page when it came to the night’s positional planning. However, several players in the Patriots’ locker room were candid in revealing that they were unaware that both Jones and Zappe would be seeing in-game action on Monday.
As the team begins preparations for their Week 8 matchup with the 5-2 New York Jets, the confusion surrounding the identity of the Pats’ quarterback looks to be building, rather than diminishing. While Belichick declined to provide further comment on the budding controversy, it seems fair to assume that both Jones and Zappe will receive strong consideration.
Follow Mike D’Abate on Twitter @mdabateNFL and Listen/Subscribe to his daily podcast: Locked On Patriots
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