Why Rob Gronkowski believes Patriots should start Mac Jones against Giants
"This game being a winnable game, Mac Jones should start."
As the Patriots are in the midst of a quarterback controversy, Rob Gronkowski has a clear answer on who should and who shouldn’t start.
In a segment on FanDuel TV’s “Up & Adams” show, the Patriots legend laid out two scenarios to consider when picking a starting quarterback, explaining why he thinks Mac Jones is the right guy for Sunday’s game against the Giants.
“This game being a winnable game, Mac Jones should start,” Gronkowski said. “You know what you’re going to get out of Mac Jones. If it was a game where they were playing a very, very good team and there was really no chance for the Patriots to win, I’d think you start Will Grier because he can possibly give you a spark, that little spark to get the offense going and give you a chance to win versus that good team.
“Mac Jones has played plenty of games versus good teams and there isn’t that spark for them to get over the hump. Will Grier may get them over the hump.”
Sunday’s game might be the most winnable game left this season for the 2-8 Patriots. The Giants have the fewest wins out of any team remaining on their schedule, sitting at 3-8 entering Sunday’s game. The Patriots are also favored by 3.5 points, which might mark the final time they’ll be favored to win a game this season as four of their other six remaining opponents are currently .500 or better.
But Jones has mostly struggled this season, regardless of the quality of the opponent. He’s completed 65.4 percent of his passes 2,031 yards, 10 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions with an 80.2 passer rating. He’s been benched three times, with two of his benching coming against the 5-5 Saints and the 5-5 Colts.
Jones has more of a proven track record though than Grier. The fifth-year vet has only played in two games in his NFL career, with both appearances coming with the Panthers during his rookie season in 2019. Since then, Grier’s either been buried on the depth chart or on the practice squad for whichever team he’s been on before signing with the Patriots in September.
“With Will Grier starting versus a team you can possibly win, you don’t really know what you’re going to get out of him, so you’re not really sure if you can get that victory,” Gronkowski said. “But with Mac Jones starting, you definitely have a chance against the Giants.”
Gronkowski has been critical of Jones at times this season, saying recently that “no one respects him” in New England and he should ask to be released. But he thinks the third-year quarterback is a better option to start than the Patriots’ other backup quarterback.
“Bailey Zappe, I don’t think he’s in the picture to start. I think he’s had his chances and he’s just not up to par,” Gronkowski said. “I think Mac Jones is definitely a better player than Bailey Zappe, gives them the best chance to win the game no matter what the situation is.”
After winning both of his starts last season and showing impressive spurts of play over his four games as a rookie, Zappe has notably regressed this season. He struggled in training camp and the preseason, causing the team to initially waive him on roster cutdown day in August.
The Patriots re-signed him to the active roster in September, making Zappe the primary backup quarterback again. He’s completed just 40 percent of his passes for 104 yards over his three fill-in stints this season, throwing a game-ending interception into triple coverage following a fake spike in the Patriots’ loss to the Colts.
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