During spring practices, Mac Jones said that he -- unlike Ryan Tannehill -- was more than willing to mentor an understudy quarterback.
And he apparently was serious about it.
The Patriots quarterback, sidelined the last two weeks with a high ankle sprain, has watched rookie third-stringer Bailey Zappe play well in his absence. Zappe was particularly impressive last Sunday in New England's shutout win over the lowly Detroit Lions at Gillette Stadium.
During a Monday appearance on WEEI's "Merloni, Fauria & Mego" show, Zappe revealed how Jones has helped him behind the scenes.
"We meet almost every day with the quarterbacks," Zappe said, as transcribed by MassLive's Chris Mason. "We go through the install that day or the game plan of the week and I ask (Jones) a lot of questions, because he has a whole year underneath his belt so he knows a lot more than I do. So, being able to pick his brain about certain things -- certain plays, certain coverages -- he always has a great answer for me. He's been helping me a lot."
Obviously, Jones should be supporting Zappe. It would be a big story if he weren't.
The more important question: Will Jones stay in his mentor role this Sunday, or will he return to start against the Browns in Cleveland?
That remains to be seen. Jones was a limited participant in practice last week before carrying a "doubtful" designation into the Lions game. We'll see if he ups his participation level when the Patriots take the practice field Wednesday afternoon.
