Bailey Zappe recently confirmed other teams reached out to him when he was initially cut by the New England Patriots before the start of the season.
The Patriots quarterback passed through waivers unclaimed and ended up re-signing with the team. However, there was a brief moment of concern that another team could potentially sign him.
That begs the question, if there were other options out there, why come back to New England?
“I felt like for me, my best opportunity was to learn from Coach Belichick, learn from Coach [Bill O’Brien], and I felt like that was the best fit for my career,” Zappe said, when appearing on Jones and Mego, via NESN’s Zack Cox. “To stay here and have the opportunity to play, have the opportunity to stay with these guys that I’ve built relationships with. I think the main thing is just to learn from the coaches that we have here, and I think that was the best fit for my career and the future for whatever happens for me.”
Bailey Zappe confirmed today on @JonesandMego that other teams reached out to him when the Patriots cut him before the season. Why did he choose to stay?
"I felt like for me, my best opportunity was to learn from Coach Belichick, learn from Coach (O'Brien), and I felt like that…
— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) December 4, 2023
Other interested teams is good news for Zappe, who could be in a tough position next year, if the Patriots end up drafting a new quarterback.
Mac Jones still has another year left on his contract, and the team also has to decide what to do with Malik Cunningham. Another addition to the room could mean the end of Zappe-Mania in New England, unless he shows himself as a top backup in the next five games.
He started against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, and the Patriots got shut out in a 6-0 loss. Granted, things operated much better with him under center than it had in recent weeks under Jones, but it still wasn’t enough to get the job done in critical situations.
We’ll see if Zappe can change that narrative, starting with Thursday night’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
