What Boston sports radio is saying about the Patriots’ quarterback controversy
Hosts have been divided on how New England should proceed at quarterback.
After another solid perfomance by Bailey Zappe in Sunday’s blowout win over the Browns, the Patriots may be looking at a quarterback controversy.
While head coach Bill Belichick has not offered much insight into how the situation might play out, Boston sports radio hosts have made their thoughts quite clear.
There have been numerous opinions on how exactly New England should proceed at quarterback, but one thing is obvious – the debate is real.
“This is the first time where [the quarterback debate] is not a silly conversation, it’s a real one,” said Rich Shertenlieb of 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Toucher and Rich” on Monday.
Scott Zolak of The Sports Hub’s “Zolak and Bertrand” echoed a similar sentiment, saying Monday, “Like [NBC Sports Boston’s] Michael Holley said on [Boston Sports Tonight], … it’s not a joke anymore. It’s not embarrassing to have this conversation.”
From there, however, there was little consensus.
Shertenlieb believed Mac Jones should at least get another chance to prove himself, telling his co-hosts that the Patriots should, “see if [Jones] can get out there and do something” against the Chicago Bears. “If he blows it … then the decision should be made. Then you put in Bailey Zappe and you let him ride, because to be quite honest he’s met and exceeded all of our expectations.”
Shertenlieb’s co-host Jon Wallach felt that going back to Jones would be more of a commitment.
“I think if you put Mac back in, he’s your quarterback whether or not you win against Chicago. I don’t think it’s a one-week thing. I don’t think you can do that to him,” Wallach said.
Greg Hill of WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” was a staunch supporter of Jones as the starter going forward.
When asked by co-host Courtney Cox if New England should start Jones if he is healthy for Monday’s game against Chicago, Hill replied, “Yes. I think he’s your quarterback, he’s your first-round pick, he’s the guy who got you to the playoffs last year. It’s laughable that we’re ready to do away with him.”
One of those ready to do away with Jones was Hill’s other co-host, former Patriot Jermaine Wiggins.
“I say, the next two games, I would start Bailey Zappe, even if Mac is 100 percent. And if he performs at the level he’s been performing at, you would say, alright, maybe we’ll start him for the rest of the year. I would then trade Mac Jones before the trade deadline, which is November 1st.”
Wiggins defended his take, drawing comparisons to New England’s handling of Jimmy Garoppolo in 2017.
“If Zappe doesn’t play anymore, isn’t this similar to the Jimmy Garoppolo thing, where the whispers are going to be, any time Mac throws a bad pass, put Zappe in, put Zappe in?” Wiggins asked. “And we know Bill loves if he can get trade value from a guy.
“Garoppolo went for a second rounder, so that means maybe you might be able to get a first round pick for Mac. That’s some good value, and if you feel Zappe could be the guy you have on the contract for the next four years at a lower cost than Mac Jones, and you’re not ready to potentially pay [Jones] that much money when his fifth-year option becomes available, don’t you eliminate any problems?” he continued.
He didn’t go as far as to say the Patriots should trade Jones, but The Sports Hub’s Tony Massarotti also believed that Bailey Zappe should be the starter going forward.
He recently wrote an article titled “Why Bailey Zappe should remain the Patriots starting QB,” in which he points to Zappe’s superior play compared to Jones, as well as New England’s recent success, as key reasons to continue starting Zappe.
Zolak and his co-host, Marc Bertrand, agreed that, because of Zappe’s recent play, the Patriots need to wait until Jones is entirely healthy to bring him back.
Though he believes that Jones “is ultimately going to give this team the best chance to win,” Bertrand pointed out that he “doesn’t know why” any Patriots coach would want to go to Jones on an injured ankle to start Monday’s game after what they saw from Zappe on Sunday.
He said that sitting Jones until he is completely healthy could benefit the team in two ways.
“I think you do two things by keeping Mac on the bench for the time being. Find out what you do have in Bailey Zappe, number one. And number two, get your quarterback healthy. You went into the year with Mac Jones – get him healthy, don’t risk losing that guy for the year.”
“In the meantime, in the soft stretch, have some fun with Bailey Zappe, man, because the kid just wins.”
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