The New England Patriots look like a broken team as they sit at 2-8 during the 2023 NFL season and are headed for a disappointing end to the year.
The Patriots flew internationally to Frankfurt, Germany to take on the Indianapolis Colts and put up another woeful performance as they lost 10-6.
Mac Jones had another rough outing under center despite completing 15 of his 20 pass attempts as they went for just 170 yards and one interception.
Jones hasn’t had much time in the pocket given the offensive line’s inability to pass protect, but the quarterback hasn’t done much to help either as he either makes a poor decision throwing the football or holds onto it too long and takes a sack.
Head coach Bill Belichick clearly had enough of watching Jones as he benched him for Bailey Zappe though the backup quarterback was just as bad as his late-game interception sealed New England’s fate.
After the game, Zappe had a cryptic answer when discussing the interception via Mike Reiss of ESPN.
#Patriots QB Bailey Zappe on his game-ending INT out of a fake spike: "I can't say what I want to say."
(via @MikeReiss)pic.twitter.com/dMzPDtBhw3https://t.co/x4cI0S1Be8
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) November 12, 2023
Zappe later clarified that he wasn’t allowed to talk about penalties or officiating, so it isn’t anything regarding the playcalling or coaching.
Regardless of the reason, it wasn’t a good throw to make in that situation and Zappe admitted he was trying to force things given the team’s positioning on the field at the time.
With Jones getting benched multiple times now, it feels like Zappe could very well be named the starter after the team returns from its bye week.
It’ll be interesting to see how Belichick navigates the end of the regular season.
NEXT: Chiefs WR Has Honest Admission After Loss To Broncos