Super Bowl winning cornerback Jason McCourty has provided some insight on the New England Patriots quarterback situation after spending time with both Bailey Zappe and Mac Jones.
Zappe has stepped in for Jones at quarterback over the past three weeks after Jones was injured in a loss to the Baltimore Ravens. In the next week, back-up Brian Hoyer would come in to start against the Green Bay Packers, but would be injured, with Zappe coming in to make his debut as he performed valiantly in a loss, before impressing in wins over the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns - a surprisingly impressive performance from the fourth-round rookie from Western Kentucky.
Ahead of this week, the Patriots have a real conundrum on their hands with who they're going to start.
The 2021 first-round pick Jones won rookie of the year after an impressive first season in New England, but has started this season poorly with two touchdowns and five interceptions - with Zappe throwing for four touchdowns and just one interception.
McCourty spent three seasons with the Patriots, playing alongside his identical twin brother Devin McCourty, and returned to the area for a charity event alongside both Zappe and Jones. He explained how New England sees their quarterback situation moving forward.
Speaking on Good Morning Football, McCourty said: "The team loves both of them - they were hanging out and laughing together.
"The Patriots didn't really have a back-up quarterback behind Jones, and now they have Bailey Zappe, they have two guys to compete.
"I think Mac gets the job back, but the leash is a little bit shorter in that he can't continue to turn the ball over.
"Last year, Mac had Josh McDaniels (who has now left to become Las Vegas Raiders head coach), it's different this year and they are learning something different."
Jones has been recovering from the high ankle sprain he suffered against the Packers, and is expected to be available on Monday night's game when the Patriots face the Chicago Bears.
Zappe was the fifth quarterback selected in the 2022 NFL draft - a class which was said to be one of the worst classes of quarterbacks in recent memory with only Kenny Pickett being selected in the first two rounds.
Zappe spent four years at Houston Baptist, where he would throw 63 touchdowns, before transferring to Western Kentucky where he would throw a record breaking 62 touchdowns and 5.967 yards - the most ever in the FCS/FBS division of college football.
