Mac Jones

2022 - 10 - 24

Bailey Zappe Bailey Zappe

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Chicago Bears: Mac Jones vs Justin Fields could be electric (Da Windy City)

The Chicago Bears play against the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football. The quarterback matchup could be very good.

This has a chance to be an upset for the Bears but don’t count on it. Unfortunately, that is what Belichick and the Patriots’ defense crushes. It is on Matt Eberflus and his staff to make sure that this thing doesn’t get out of hand. They were amongst the big group of quarterbacks that went in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Bill Belichick is still in charge of that team as the coach and GM but Tom Brady has obviously moved on. They will close out the week seven chapter of the schedule on one of the game’s biggest regular season stages.

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Inactive Analysis: Patriots QB Mac Jones Officially Active vs. Bears (Patriots.com)

Patriots quarterback Mac Jones will officially return to the lineup on Monday night against the Bears following a three-game absence due to an ankle injury.

Although Jones is active and is expected to play on Monday night, the Patriots are missing several key pieces due to injury against the Bears. By making the system more QB-friendly, the hope is that the Mac-led offense will still have an explosive gear as it did to start the season but cut down on the high number of turnovers. With Jones active for the Patriots in Week 7, he will likely start, but several reports indicate that rookie Bailey Zappe could also take snaps.

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QB Mac Jones expected to start for Patriots vs. Bears on Monday night (NFL.com)

After missing three games due to a high right ankle sprain, New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones is expected to start Monday night's game against the ...

Thereafter, rookie [Bailey Zappe](/players/bailey-zappe/) took over under center and quarterbacked the Pats to consecutive victories. [Brian Hoyer](/players/brian-hoyer/) originally took on the starting role, but he too was lost to injury when he was [concussed in a Week 4 loss](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-qb-brian-hoyer-head-injury-rookie-bailey-zappe-packers) to the Green Bay Packers. [Mac Jones](https://www.nfl.com/players/mac-jones/) is expected to start [Monday night's game](https://www.nfl.com/games/bears-at-patriots-2022-reg-7) against the visiting Chicago Bears, NFL Network's Mike Giardi reported.

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Mac Jones will reportedly start at QB for Patriots against Bears on ... (CBSSports.com)

It's the return of the Mac. After missing New England's previous three games due to a high ankle sprain, quarterback Mac Jones will start for the Patriots ...

Initially, [Brian Hoyer](/nfl/players/517243/brian-hoyer/) was slated to replace him as the Patriots' starter, but he suffered a concussion in Week 4 against the [Packers](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/GB/green-bay-packers/) at Lambeau Field, which thrust Zappe into action. In the three games Zappe played during Jones' absence, the rookie completed 72.9% of his passes to go with a 111.4 passer rating. Even in the Week 4 loss to Green Bay, Zappe kept New England in the game and helped take the game to overtime. Rookie quarterback [Bailey Zappe](/nfl/players/2866483/bailey-zappe/), who started the previous two games in Jones' absence, will back him up. Jones' return to the lineup was trending in this direction throughout the week. [Mac Jones](/nfl/players/2741202/mac-jones/) [View Profile](/nfl/players/2741202/mac-jones/)

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Mac Jones returning is not great for Patriots tonight vs. Bears, plus ... (CBSSports.com)

The Patriots have turned the ball over on a quarter of their drives with Jones at QB.

Still, with this game on the road and the Jazz playing their third road game in four nights, I'm more comfortable taking the money line than the spread. The Patriots rank 24th in the The Rockets rank last in the league in net rating and have been abysmal on the defensive end. The Pick: Knicks -7.5 (-110) -- I haven't had a chance to bet NBA games in the newsletter yet this season, partially by design but also due to scheduling. The Pick: Jazz (-130) -- The Jazz are supposed to be bad and tanking after trading Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell during the summer, but guess what? [Justin Fields](/nfl/players/1273205/justin-fields/) hasn't done much better, but he and the Bears aren't coming into this game as 8.5-point favorites. [NFL](/nfl/) in offensive success rate, while the Bears are 31st. I only reside in the city with a lot of television viewers who love their terrible football team and love to watch their terrible football team. In other words, it took better care of the ball, resulting in more points. The Houston Astros swept the Yankees in the ALCS. [Check out the details of this trade the Panthers reportedly turned down](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/panthers-rejected-massive-nfl-trade-offer-that-included-two-first-round-picks-for-star-player-per-report/). With their win Sunday night, Houston has improved to 7-0 this postseason after finishing the regular season with the best record in the American League.

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Patriots vs. Bears inactives: Mac Jones returns for Monday Night ... (Pats Pulpit)

Patriots inactives · DT Christian Barmore · S Joshuah Bledsoe · WR Kendrick Bourne · RB Kevin Harris · LB Josh Uche · CB Shaun Wade · OT Isaiah Wynn.

Not among them is wide receiver N’Keal Harry; the former Patriots first-round draft pick will make his Bears regular season debut. Both were listed as questionable heading into Monday, and have been deemed unable to suit up; Marcus Cannon will replace Wynn in the lineup, with Bourne’s role as WR3/4 likely to be split between Agholor and Tyquan Thornton. [New England Patriots](https://www.patspulpit.com/) will kick off their seventh game of the regular season.

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Patriots bench Mac Jones for Bailey Zappe in second quarter ... (CBSSports.com)

It did not last long. Struggling out of the gate against the Bears, the former first-round draft pick received a chorus of boos from the Gillette Stadium crowd ...

Jones, meanwhile, appeared hesitant in the pocket during his first snaps since suffering the ankle injury, finishing Monday's game 3 of 6 for 13 yards and a pick. [Mac Jones](/nfl/players/2741202/mac-jones/) returned to the field Monday night for the [Patriots](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/NE/new-england-patriots/), making his first start since exiting Week 3 with a high-ankle sprain. Struggling out of the gate against the [Bears](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/CHI/chicago-bears/), the former first-round draft pick received a chorus of boos from the Gillette Stadium crowd after throwing an interception in the second quarter.

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Why did the Patriots bench Mac Jones? Bailey Zappe takes over as ... (Sporting News)

Well, that didn't take long. Mac Jones made his return on "Monday Night Football" after spending weeks on the bench nursing a high ankle sprain.

But Zappe had caught the eye of the coaching staff in Jones' absence, and he continued his momentum rolling on Monday night. Jones looked fairly unimpressive in his return to the field on Monday night. Bears, Bill Belichick made a move to the rookie passer, benching his 2021 first-round pick in favor of the fourth-round rookie.

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Mac Jones vs. Bailey Zappe: Inside the Patriots' QB 'controversy' and ... (Sporting News)

When Brian Hoyer suffered a concussion in the first quarter of the Patriots' Week 4 game against the Packers, many assumed that New England was going to be ...

Clearly, Belichick believed that he would need time to develop, so his performance in limited action was a pleasant surprise. He led the Patriots to a 10-7 record and a playoff berth in his first season as a starter. It's unusual for Belichick to be that complimentary of any player, let alone a young quarterback. So, while Zappe may not have the same upside as Jones, he appears to be a good fit for the New England offense. That physical profile should allow Jones to be a better downfield passer than Zappe over time, and that would give the Patriots' offense more explosive potential. In just looking at the 2022 stats, one would assume that Belichick would want to roll with Zappe. Zappe has won each of his two starts and helped the Patriots keep things close against Aaron Rodgers and the Packers in an overtime defeat. He had room for improvement on deep balls and did prove interception-prone against top-flight defenses — he threw 13 in total — but he showed more than enough to be considered a potential long-term starter for the Patriots. Jones stands at 6-3 compared to Zappe's 6-0 and has a stronger arm than the Western Kentucky product. The Patriots had already lost Mac Jones to a high-ankle sprain, so all that they had left on the roster was third-string quarterback Bailey Zappe. That said, he was thought to be a developmental project given his lack of high-end experience. Instead, he proved ready to contribute to the Patriots' success.

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Patriots fans cheer as Bailey Zappe replaces struggling Mac Jones ... (Yahoo Canada Sports)

Jones threw a bad interception and early in the second quarter, he was replaced by rookie Bailey Zappe. There were reports that Bill Belichick planned to play ...

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Is Mac Jones active? Will he start vs. Bears on Week 7 Monday ... (DraftKings Nation)

Brian Hoyer started the first game Jones missed, but was lost to a head injury. Zappe took over and was solid as the Patriots went 2-1 in Jones' absence. Zappe ...

Jones was listed as questionable on the Patriots’ final Week 7 injury report after three straight limited practices. Quarterback Mac Jones is expected to return to the starting lineup after missing three games with an ankle sprain. Brian Hoyer started the first game Jones missed, but was lost to a head injury.

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Patriots bench Mac Jones for Bailey Zappe vs. Bears; rookie QB ... (CBSSports.com)

Jones, meanwhile, appeared hesitant in the pocket during his first snaps since suffering the ankle injury, finishing Monday's game 3 of 6 for 13 yards and a ...

Jones, meanwhile, appeared hesitant in the pocket during his first snaps since suffering the ankle injury, finishing Monday's game 3 of 6 for 13 yards and a pick. Struggling out of the gate against the [Bears](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/CHI/chicago-bears/), the former first-round draft pick received a chorus of boos from the Gillette Stadium crowd after throwing an interception in the second quarter. [Mac Jones](/nfl/players/2741202/mac-jones/) returned to the field Monday night for the [Patriots](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/teams/NE/new-england-patriots/), making his first start since exiting Week 3 with a high-ankle sprain.

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Patriots' Mac Jones' questionable slides sparks 'dirty player' debate ... (Sporting News)

Mac Jones avoided few sacks on Monday night, but maybe not another one. The Patriots quarterback is back after suffering a high-ankle sprain earlier this ...

That's why D-linemen don't like quarterbacks." "D-linemen don't like this. the Bears.

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Why did the Patriots bench Mac Jones? Bill Belichick explains ... (Sporting News)

Well, that didn't take long. Mac Jones made his return on "Monday Night Football" after spending weeks on the bench nursing a high ankle sprain.

Jones looked fairly unimpressive in his return to the field on Monday night. Belichick did say that Jones' health was "a factor" in the decision (though it was pretty apparent that he was moving well), and that Jones would have re-entered the game had the score not gotten out of hand. He declined to say that the decision to put Zappe in the game was a benching of Jones, who had thrown an interception on the drive prior to the QB change.

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Patriots Bench Mac Jones for Bailey Zappe in First Half vs. Bears on ... (Sports Illustrated)

New England replaced the former first-rounder for the fourth-round rookie on Monday night.

Zappe, a fourth round pick out of Western Kentucky, was inactive for the first three weeks before stepping in for an injured Brian Hoyer in the 27–24 Week 4 loss to the Packers. It didn’t take long for the new fan favorite to inject some life into the offense as Zappe completed all three of his passes for 54 yards and a 30-yard touchdown toss to receiver Jakobi Meyers. Jones’s pick came as the raucous crowd at Gillette Stadium began chanting “Zappe” after Chicago jumped out to an early 10–0 lead.

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Mac Jones Gives Way To Bailey Zappe In Patriots Dismal Start vs ... (Sports Illustrated)

The Patriots are off to a rough start on Monday night, as they host the Chicago Bears in Week 7.

[Click Here](https://www.si.com/nfl/patriots/news) Otherwise, it could be a long, foggy night in Foxboro. Choosing to run on 3rd & 10 at their own 21 drew a loud chorus of boos from the crowd at Gillette Stadium. Still, things were about to get worse. Zappe hit Jakobi Meyers with a 30-yard scoring strike. They are

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