FOXBOROUGH – As much of New England has gotten a taste of Bailey Zappe Fever, the man who is sprung it upon Patriots fans isn't paying it much attention.

Bailey Zappe originally denied that he's heard of the phrase “Zappe Fever,” which has picked up steam in the days after the rookie quarterback led the Patriots to a 29-0 win over the Lions in Week 5. However, Zappe was smiling when he was asked the question – a tell that he wasn't being 100 percent truthful when asked.

“I guess I’ve heard a little bit about it,” Zappe admitted right after with a smile again. “I mean, I haven’t dove into any of that. I don’t really pay attention to that stuff. I’m just focused on what’s going on right now and that’s the Browns.”

While several Patriots fans have a case of Zappe Fever, Zappe has a case of just focusing on the task at hand. The Patriots' play the Browns on Sunday, but it isn't known yet if Zappe will make career start No. 2 or if he'll be back on the bench. Mac Jones was at practice again on Wednesday, this time without as noticeable of a limp compared to the previous two weeks following his ankle injury.

Bailey Zappe wouldn't tell though who's starting in Week 6.

“I’m preparing to do what my coaches tell me I’m supposed to be doing,” Zappe said. “Right now, that’s to take practice reps and doing everything I can to help the team.”

Zappe also said that he's “taking advantage of my reps at practice.” He feels like the more reps he's taken, the better he's gotten between practice and in the games.

“Yeah, there’s a few things that I feel like I’ve improved on a little bit, but there’s some things that I can continue to work on,” Zappe said. “Pre-snap recognition, post-snap seeing coverages, stuff like that, is some stuff that I feel like I’ve gotten a little bit better at, but there’s a lot more improvement I can make in that area.”

In his first two career NFL games, Zappe has noticeably improved to where he was in the preseason. Against the Packers in Week 4, he completed 10 of 15 passes for 99 yards with a touchdown pass. In Week 5, he completed 17 of 21 passes for 188 yards with a touchdown and an interception, leading the Patriots to scoring drives on six of their nine possessions.

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Despite the solid numbers, Zappe hasn't been asked to do too much so far. He's only thrown five passes that have traveled in the air for at least 15 yards through two games. But he feels that the coaching staff is letting him do a bit more as time goes along.

“Yeah, I think so,” Bailey Zappe said when asked if he felt the playbook for him was growing. “I guess that comes with more and more reps, especially with everybody as the weeks go on. You continue to grow your playbook, you continue to grow. Whether it’s the open field, red area, whatever you have to do to win games.”

Zappe might not have much more time, at least coming up, to play in games as Mac Jones' return looms. He admitted that there's a “little” bit of a competitive nature between the two quarterbacks, but they're also both helping each other out, too.

“We’re friends. He helps me a lot, I try to help him as much as I can,” Zappe said. “I’m always picking his brain and doing everything I can to continue to learn and grow. I think our QB room with Garrett Gilbert, and of course Brian Hoyer, we have a good QB group. I like to pick all those guys’ brains.”

The first month-plus of Zappe's career has certainly been a bit unusual. The fourth-round rookie went from being a third-string quarterback that was a gameday scratch to playing a significant amount of time in Week 4 and starting in Week 5.

Despite the unusualness of the situation, Bailey Zappe said that being an NFL quarterback is “100 percent” what he'd thought it'd be.

“It takes a lot of work. You got to be here early, stay late,” Zappe said. “I love the game of football. I love watching film. I love learning the game of football, so this stuff is fun for me.”