Mac Jones appears to be very self-motivated, but a Patriots teammate might be fueling the third-year quarterback’s fire as well.
Almost nothing went right for Jones in his sophomore season, and at one point in 2022, it looked like a different signal-caller was going to take the reins as QB1 in New England. Bailey Zappe had his number called when Jones was dealing with an ankle injury, and the rookie fourth-rounder impressed for the majority of his time on the field. In fact, the Patriots logged their two highest point totals last season in games Zappe started.
Jones ultimately returned behind center once he was healthy, but a series of remarks from head coach Bill Belichick indicate the Alabama product doesn’t have rock-solid job security going into the 2023 campaign. So, with Zappe waiting in the wings with a non-zero chance to start, Chris Simms believes Jones is preparing accordingly.
“Not surprised to hear that Mac’s hanging around the facility, especially in a year like this,” Simms said on NBC Sports’ “ProFootballTalk.” “And, you know, there’s a backup that gets thrown into the conversation with his name quite often. I’m sure every now and then it wakes him up in the middle of the night. He’s like, ‘Bailey Zappe — OK, I gotta get to work.’ Psycho starting quarterbacks, that’s how they think. That became a thing this year, too. I’m sure he’s going, ‘Wait, Bailey, is he here? He’s not here? Good, I’m going into the facility. I’m going to get a few hours on him.’
“It’s all the competitive, good culture-building things you need. Yes, it does give Bill Belichick and the rest of the group more confidence, too, in that, ‘Hey, my guy’s here working.’ That starts to filter through the building and filter to the locker room and players start doing it, too.”
Zappe reportedly has a “lot of support” in the Patriots locker room, and New England apparently doesn’t see a massive gap between him and Jones. So, when the Patriots convene for training camp this summer, it sounds like a legitimate quarterback battle will commence.
