The New England Patriots' decision to release Bailey Zappe before the roster cut deadline surprised not only the whole fan base. Apparently, it also shocked the young QB himself.

Throughout the offseason, there were high expectations that Zappe would be the Patriots' backup quarterback behind Mac Jones. The 24-year-old certainly showed flashes of brilliance last season when he took over and started in two games for the franchise. He was even initially seen as a competitor for the QB1 job before it was made clear that Bill Belichick and co. are sticking with Jones for the starting role.

With that said, it's not a surprise why everyone was dumbfounded when Zappe was cut.

Now, according to recent reports, the Patriots didn't have conversations with Zappe and his camp prior to making the decision. Because of that, Zappe's side was completely “blindsided” by the move.

“The word that I got from somebody in Zappe's camp was blindsided. ‘We were as blindsided as you,'” Patriots.com’s Evan Lazar shared on the Patriots Unfiltered podcast.

The Patriots eventually took back Bailey Zappe and Malik Cunningham (who was also cut before the deadline) and signed them to their practice squad. However, Zappe's future with the team remains unknown after New England claimed Matt Corral off waivers to fill the QB2 spot.

There have been talks about Zappe and Corral fighting for the backup QB role, and it has yet to be seen who among the two will stand out.

Patriots players surprised by Bailey Zappe cut

Just like the rest of the New England faithful, several Patriots players were also caught off guard by the team's decision to cut Bailey Zappe. One of the most surprised was team legend Matthew Slater who, despite being in the NFL for 16 years now, didn't see the cut coming.

“I guess I've learned to expect the unexpected. You just worry about the things that you can control. You keep your head down and hope that you do a good enough job, and you support your teammates,” Slater explained. “Certainly something like that is, I guess, surprising for a lot of us, but that’s just the nature of the business.”

Wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster had similar sentiments as he also expressed his sadness for the shocking turn of events.

“It's tough. These past couple days have been tough. You can come in one morning, and the guy you were just talking to, is gone. At the same time, I truly do believe what the coaches are doing, and the decisions they’re making … whatever they decide was best for the team, we’re all going to ride with it,” Smith-Schuster shared.

As mentioned, several fans were mad and confused by Zappe's release. While he's now in the practice squad, many still can't comprehend why he was cut in the first place. Many argued that he even outplayed Mac Jones last season.

“Wildest part is he should be the one riding the bench for sure. Waiving Bailey Zappe is absurd considering I think he did more with his opportunities than Mac Jones. Coulda been another Drew Bledsoe – Tom Brady situation but at a way more mediocre level,” one frustrated supporter said.

“Bailey Zappe looked nice when he played. Confused by that one in New England, who's backing up Mac Jones?” another fan asked.

It remains to be seen what the Patriots will do before the season officially starts, but sure enough, all eyes will be on Jones, Corrall and Zappe and how they perform this 2023 campaign.