Bill Belichick still taking Patriots’ QB situation ‘day-by-day’ as Mac Jones reportedly nears return

Jones has missed the last three games, but appears likely to return in Week 7.

Bill Belichick wouldn't say how he's approaching the Patriots' quarterback situation.

October 21, 2022

2 minutes to read

Reports in recent days suggest that Mac Jones will not only return from his high ankle sprain injury on Monday night, but he’ll also be starting at quarterback against the Bears.

If you ask Patriots coach Bill Belichick though, he won’t share what the team’s plan is at quarterback for the Week 7 matchup. He wouldn’t say if a decision has been made at quarterback when asked on Friday.

“We’re just taking it day-by-day,” Belichick said with a smile.

The “day-by-day” approach is what Belichick’s taken for much of the time Jones has been out with the injury, which he suffered at the end of the Patriots’ Week 3 loss to the Ravens.

After he didn’t practice in the first week following the injury, Jones practiced in each of the following two weeks, though he was limited and didn’t play in the ensuing games.

Jones looked the best he’s been during the media availability portion of practice on Thursday since he suffered the injury, appearing to be more mobile than the prior two weeks.

Belichick said he was encouraged by Jones’s improved appearance on the practice field.

“It’s good to have all of the players out there, that are out there,” Belichick said. “Some are doing more than others. We’ll see how it goes.”

Belichick also shared that Jones appeared to look better than he did last week while making note of the different schedule the team’s working on in Week 7 due to the game being played on Monday.

“Yesterday was a Wednesday, in my world,” Belichick said with a smile. “He did more yesterday than he did the previous Wednesday. Yeah, that would be fair. Yeah. Today’s actually Thursday.”

As Jones’s health appears to improve, it’s been questioned if he should regain his role as the Patriots’ starting quarterback when he returns. Fourth-round rookie Bailey Zappe has performed well in Jones’s absence.

After giving New England a steady hand when he replaced Brian Hoyer in its Week 4 overtime loss to Green Bay, Zappe won his first two career NFL starts. Through three games, Zappe’s completed 72.9 percent of his passes for 596 yards, four touchdowns, and an interception with a 111.4 passer rating, the best of any quarterback who’s thrown at least 70 passes this season.

While he won’t say who’ll be starting at quarterback on Monday, Belichick said he’s “kind of glad” to have the extra time to prepare for the 2-4 Bears.

“[The Bears are] a team that we don’t know very well, but we’re getting to know pretty well,” Belichick said. “It’s been helpful. We’ll see how it goes here today and just keep stringing them together, get ready for Monday night.”