This New England Patriots team is AWFUL. That's not an exaggeration: this team has not looked good over the last few games. The offense is the biggest culprit: after scoring just three points the week prior, the Pats offense was completely shut out by the Saints in Week 5. Mac Jones is regressing heavily, and his replacement Bailey Zappe hasn't been any better.

Because of that, there's talk of a certain Patriots preseason phenom potentially playing in a game. Malik Cunningham, the New England wide receiver who excelled at quarterback, is currently on the team's practice squad. However, head coach Bill Belichick said that Cunningham is trending towards playing soon, per Josh Alper.

“(Patriots OC Bill) O’Brien said Cunningham has been seeing most of his time at wide receiver in practices, but did get some work at quarterback to help the team prepare for Saints tight end/quarterback Taysom Hill last week. O’Brien called Cunningham one of the team’s most improved players and (Bill) Belichick concurred on Friday while saying Cunningham is “definitely trending towards” getting a chance to see game action.”

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The Patriots offense has been absolutely dreadful this season. The hope was that the arrival of Bill O'Brien as the offensive coordinator would help Mac Jones return to form. Instead, Jones has taken another step back. His mechanics have regressed, and he doesn't have the proper weapons to mask his deficiencies.

Malik Cunningham could be a good change-up for the Patriots at quarterback. The rookie was initially listed as a wide receiver (and continues to practice as a receiver). However, he showed some promise at quarterback during the preseason. Now, it's important to note that preseason excellent doesn't equate to strong play in the regular season (see: Dorian Thompson-Robinson). However, considering how badly this season is going, it might be at least worth a shot.