The New England Patriots have played surprisingly well without quarterback Mac Jones over the past two weeks.
The main reason for their success on offense has been the surprising play of rookie QB Bailey Zappe.
New England selected Zappe in the fourth round of this past NFL draft.
He was not expected to play at all this season but he was thrown into the fire after the two QBs ahead of him were injured.
Now, Zappe is playing like he deserves to keep the starting job.
The rookie has been awesome in his two starts this season.
He is 2-0 but is also taking care of the ball and completing passes at a high rate.
Two things that normally are not seen in rookie QBs.
Zappe is completing 72.9% of his passes this year and has four touchdowns and one interception.
Also, he has yet to have a passer rating below 100.
Bailey Zappe's Passer Ratings this season
Week 4 107.4
Week 5 100.0
Week 6 118.4— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) October 16, 2022
So should Zappe keep the starting role once Jones can return?
The answer should be yes.
New England should continue to ride the hot hand as long as they are winning.
Also, Jones is not far and away better than Zappe.
In the games, Jones has played this year he has thrown two touchdowns and five interceptions.
There is no reason for the Patriots to go back to Jones if Zappe is going to take care of the ball and win games.
Later in the season, there may come a point where Jones re-takes the starting role.
But, for now, Zappe is the hot hand and he should remain the starter.
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