With rookie Bailey Zappe on a roll right now, one of the biggest questions going forward is whether he’ll keep the starting quarterback job in New England once Mac Jones is healthy and he looks like we now have an answer to that question.
According to athleticsa QB controversy is NOT brewing in New England and Jones will be the starter once he is fully healthy.
If you’re wondering when Jones will be back on the court, it looks like it could be as soon as this week. According to ESPN.com, Jones expects to be available for New England’s game on Monday against the Bears. The sophomore quarterback apparently told his teammates he was ready to play. Jones hasn’t taken a snap under center for the Patriots since suffering a sprained ankle in a 37-26 loss to the Ravens in Week 3.
Since then, the Patriots have used a total of two quarterbacks. Brian Hoyer started Week 4 against the Packers, but ended up getting injured, which led to Zappe taking over. Since then, Zappe has played a total of 11 quarters and he has gone 2-0 in his two starts. During that span, he completed an impressive 72.9% of his passes and he didn’t really make a mistake: he threw five touchdowns against just one interception. On the other hand, Jones is only 1-2 in three starts and he has thrown five interceptions against just two touchdowns.
Patriots coach Bill Belichick has been asked several times over the past few weeks who the starter will be when Jones is healthy enough to play, and like all things with Belichick, he gave no clue. .
“Hypotheticals and stuff, I’m going to stay away from those,” Belichick said Wednesday, via ESPN. “We’ll see what we’re really dealing with here as we move forward.”
If Jones is cleared to play this week and returns to the field for practice Thursday, that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be the starter against the Bears. If he has a setback in practice or looks rusty or if his ankle is giving him trouble, the Patriots would probably let Zappe get another start. While things may be on hold for Week 7, it looks like Jones will be the starter after that if the job is his, as reported by Athletic.
