Bailey Zappe is the lone quarterback remaining from the New England Patriots' disastrous 2023 season, with the team shipping out Mac Jones while signing Jacoby Brissett and drafting Drake Maye.
Patriots coach Jerod Mayo admitted to reporters that the situation is “awkward” for Zappe when he spoke with reporters on Wednesday. But Zappe dispelled the notion that it's been uncomfortable for him shortly later.
“I’ve been having fun, y’all,” Zappe said. “They bring in guys every year, obviously. They want everybody to compete, and that’s what they’ve been telling us this entire time: that everybody’s going to get an opportunity, everybody’s going to compete. And just like Mayo said, it depends on what you do with that opportunity.”
The Patriots opted to reshape their quarterbacks room this offseason, in part, because of Zappe's struggles in 2023. While Zappe replaced Jones due to the latter's poor play, he wasn't much better, throwing for 1,114 yards, six touchdowns, and seven interceptions with a 75.6 passer rating over the six starts he made. New England went 2-4 in those games.
Zappe recognized that he could play a lot better than he did last season.
“There were some things personally that I felt like I did really good and there were some things that I feel I did really bad at,” Zappe said. “Those are things obviously throughout the summer that I’ve been continuing to work on. I’ve been with [offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt], I’ve been with [QBs coach] T.C. [McCartney], and I’ve talked to Jacoby about some of those things and how I can fix those things and not have them happen and cost us games. Because when you look back at it, mistakes that I made cost us wins.”
When you look at Zappe's performance and the moves the Patriots made this offseason, it's easy to think that he could be the odd man out in New England's quarterbacks room. The team used the third overall pick to select Maye and it's believed Brissett was signed to be a stop-gap option as a starting quarterback. They also selected Joe Milton in the sixth round of the draft.
However, Zappe believes he'll have a chance to win the starting job.
“They’ve told all of us that this was going to be a competition,” Zappe said. “Everybody’s going to have an opportunity to go out there and prove that they can be that guy. All four of us are going to do our best to do that, and then whoever gets that job, the other three of us are going to help that guy do whatever he can on the field to win games.”
What Jerod Mayo, Jacoby Brissett said of Patriots QB Bailey Zappe
As Zappe's confidence was on full display on Wednesday, his fellow veteran quarterback complimented him on his attitude.
“The elephant in the room,” Brissett said of the spot Zappe's in. “It’s a tough situation. He’s accepted that.”
Mayo offered even higher praise of Zappe's character on Wednesday.
“I would put him in the same category that we talked about Brian [Belichick], how it’s awkward for Brian and he’s handled it well,” Mayo said, referring to Brian Belichick's decision to remain in New England as its safeties coach after his father (Bill) and brother (Steve) left. “The same thing for Zappe, I think he has handled it fantastically. Look, he is getting reps out here. You guys see him out here, and I would say he is getting better.”
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