Patriots QB controversy Bailey Zappe has Bill Belichick making Mac Jon

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Is history repeating in Foxborough?The Patriots rolled to a Richard Hamilton Jersey  29-0 victory over the Lions on Sunday, with Bill Belichick, Matt Patricia and Bailey Zappe leading the Motown demolition.With third-string rookie Zappe guiding the Patriots to a win in his first career start at quarterback  and with No. 1 QB Mac Jones injured after being ineffective in his three games this year  Belichick may face a decision about the quarterback position sooner rather than later.MORE:Belichick is no stranger to controversial roster decisions, especially those surrounding quarterbacks. The last couple of times the Patriots have made a big QB decision, they've been league-altering.On Sunday, Belichick praised Zappe's ability to correctly identify what he saw on the field, and he also made a comparison.I think you saw a similar thing with Mac (Jones) last year. Same basic concept. Play, see things, play better, learn from it, pace of the game, calling plays in the huddle, reading defenses, managing the clock, etc. I know all quarterbacks have done those things before. It's a little different at this level  more things to think about, more things to do and so forth.IYER: Zappe produced a very Jones-like pa sing line against Detroit. He completed 17 of 21 attempts for 188 yards with a touchdown and an interception.It would be in Belichick's M.O. to consider riding the hot hand. Jones' diminishing returns early in the season could keep him on the bench  or extend his recovery from the ankle injury  longer than expected. It wouldn't be the first time the coach benched a first-round pick in favor of a late-round prospect.The Patriots' selection of Zappe in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft did raise eyebrows. While the draft was lighter on impact talent, devoting a fourth-round pick to someone to be the team's QB3 (who now is temporarily QB1) was questionable.MORE:That said, Jones wasn't playing to his 2021 standard prior to being hurt. Pro Football Focus graded Jones as a 58.4 pa ser through three games as compared to the 80.0 grade he received for his body of work last year. He was ranked 32nd among NFL quarterbacks before his injury (minimum one Jahlil Okafor Jersey  dropback).Zappe's PFF grade won't be out until Monday morning, but it certainly sounds as though he has gotten a pa sing one from Belichick after two weeks.Whether that'll be good enough to make Belichick think twice about his star pupil remains to be seen.            Related Articles