Might the play of Bailey Zappe create QB controversy with Mac Jones?

By Henry McKenna
FOX Sports AFC East Writer

There was a lot of talk about the Patriots‘ defense shutting down the Lions‘ top-scoring offense on Sunday. And that’s justified. But perhaps we lost sight of the fact that Detroit also has the worst scoring defense. The Lions have allowed 34 points per game after five weeks. Their passing defense is seventh-worst in the NFL with 261 yards allowed per game.

Those numbers are crucially important as we come to understand Bailey Zappe‘s performance. New England set up the young quarterback to succeed, so he looked not like what he is (a rookie fourth-round draft pick) but instead like a game-managing veteran. Zappe finished 17-of-21 (81%) for 188 yards, one touchdown and one interception with zero sacks and no fumbles. His lone interception was due to a drop by Nelson Agholor. On the whole, I’d score it a squeaky clean game for Zappe.

“Bailey made a lot of good decisions, was accurate with the ball,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. “Thought he showed some poise there at some pressure situations where he got out of it and found an open receiver, made good decisions.”

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So what’s next for New England at quarterback?

When Mac Jones gets healthy, he will start. I’m just about 99% certain of that. That one percentage point of uncertainty comes back to this quote from Belichick after Jones’ three-interception game when he hurt ankle against the Ravens.

“Obviously, the turnovers hurt us,” Belichick said a few weeks ago.

As benign as it sounds, he said it twice. He didn’t chalk up their 37-26 loss to Baltimore to turnovers alone — but he came pretty close. Jones has two touchdowns to his five interceptions this season. So if Zappe is playing clean football and Jones gets sloppy in the coming weeks, then maybe we see a change at quarterback. Maybe.

But that would be down the line. For now, Jones will return when he has recovered from his high ankle sprain. He won’t lose the title of starting quarterback.

However, Zappe has opened the door for himself if Jones doesn’t clean up his turnover issues.

If you think I’m crazy, consider what Zappe’s college coach told me after the draft.

“(Zappe) is definitely every single day trying to take another man’s job — no matter who that guy is in front of him,” Tyson Helton said by phone. “I think it’s awesome that he has an opportunity to say: ‘OK, here’s an established starter in Mac Jones, who’s a very, very good player.’ I admire him as well. I think he’ll play for a long time and be very successful. … There’s no question in my mind that from Day 1, he’s going to push whoever is in front of him.”

Is it Zappening? We’ll see.

Prior to joining FOX Sports as the AFC East reporter, Henry McKenna spent seven years covering the Patriots for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Boston Globe Media. Follow him on Twitter at @McKennAnalysis.