FOXBORO — Bailey Zappe wasn’t prepared to completely mirror on what’s been a really unusual season within the Patriots’ quarterback room, however he did discuss his progress as a second-year professional on Thursday.
Zappe was reduce after struggling within the preseason and coaching camp, leaving then-starter Mac Jones because the staff’s solely quarterback. Zappe was introduced again to the observe squad after which signed to the 53-man roster earlier than Week 1. It took practically three-quarters of the season, however Zappe ultimately surpassed Jones on the QB depth chart in Week 13. He’s since gone 2-3 as a starter.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s come a long way, I guess,” Zappe mentioned about his development since September. “Still learning, still fixing a lot of things. I’m never going to be in a situation where I think that, you know, ‘Hey, I’m done. I don’t have to fix anything.’ But, I mean, I’m always going to view myself as somebody that, you know, ‘I need to continue to fix this, continue to work on that.’ So, I’m always going to keep trying to improve. Always going to keep trying to help the team win games for as long as I’m here. So, I mean, I think every game and every day I’m looking at it to improve and try to get better every day.”
Zappe was requested a follow-up about how a lot he appears like he’s improved for the reason that Patriots had joint practices with the Packers in August.
“I would say, of course, there’s definitely things that I’ve improved on, of course, throughout experience and this being my eighth start,” Zappe, who was 2-0 as a starter in 2022, mentioned. “So, as expertise goes by and video games go by, in fact, you begin studying issues. You begin seeing issues. The recreation form of begins slowing down for you.
“But, I mean, I would say there’s a vast improvement. But there’s a lot of things that I have definitely improved on since then that I wish, of course, I knew then. But now I know, so I’m glad that I figured it out. I’m ready to kind of improve on that this week again and get ready for the Jets.”
Zappe is signed by way of the 2025 season, so likelihood is he shall be again with the group subsequent season. But he discovered on the finish of the summer season, when he was accessible to the remainder of the 31 groups on waivers, that nothing is assured within the NFL.
Zappe has seemingly improved because the season has progressed, however he additionally threw three interceptions within the first half of Sunday’s loss to the Bills. It wouldn’t be prudent for the Patriots to even rely upon him as a bridge starter for a rookie until they might depend on dramatically extra enchancment earlier than subsequent season. If the Patriots can’t choose or commerce as much as take one of many high quarterbacks within the 2024 NFL Draft, then there needs to be veteran choices accessible with extra constant beginning expertise.
Source: www.bostonherald.com