Getty New England Patriots
The New England Patriots entered Week 7 with plenty of promise but after the Monday night matchup with the Chicago Bears, there are more questions than answers.
New England was defeated by a far inferior Bears team. The Patriots are now 3-4 and at the bottom of the AFC East and don’t have a starting quarterback.
Mac Jones started the game and after three drives was pulled from the game. Jones threw for 13 yards and an interception per Pro Football Reference. Then Bailey Zappe came in and threw for 185 yards, a touchdown, and two interceptions per Pro Football Reference.
While it seemed like Jones was benched with his last play being the interception he threw, Bill Belichick dismissed the notion after the loss.
“That’s not what it was, but you can write whatever you want to write.,” Belichick said when asked if Jones was benched. “That’s not what it was.”
What Did Jones Think of the Zappe Chants?
With Jones struggling, the Gillette Stadium crowd began to turn on Jones. They cheered for Zappe to come on and eventually their cheers were answered.
But hearing those cheers must not have been a pleasant experience for Jones. The second-year quarterback was asked about the cheers after the game.
“Yeah, I think obviously, like I said earlier, definitely wanted to play better,” Jones said about the chants. “I just have to do better at my job, and that’s all it comes down to. That’s all I can control. Honestly, we’ve got a good chance here to go against the Jets, and that’s what I’m focused on. I’m going to do my best to put my best foot forward. I’ve been in this situation before, and just going to try to help the team. Whatever my role is, I’ll be ready, and I’ll give it 100%.”
While Jones played coy when speaking with the media, former Patriots linebacker and current analyst Ted Johnson believes that Jones will never let fans in New England forget that they rooted against him.
Mac Jones will never forget the fans turning on him last night. He strikes me as a guy who will always hold that against them.
How Did the Patriots React to Jones Being Pulled?
After the game, a number of Patriots players were asked about the quarterback change. Jakobi Meyers said it was tough to see Jones go through the tough situation against the Bears.
“It’s tough to see somebody who works so hard get that kind of treatment,” Meyers said.
“Not even the coaches, just everybody,” Meyers stated when asked for clarification by Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald. “The crowd, all of it. It was an ugly situation, in my opinion.”
With the starting quarterback job now in limbo, Devin McCourty was asked about who the starting quarterback will be moving forward.
“We’ll have to see. I know for me, defensively, as we gave up thirty-three points,” McCourty said. “I don’t think anybody on defense needs to worry about who the quarterback is going to be at all. We need to worry about what we need to do and figure out how we’re going to get stops and play better. I think that needs to be the key for everybody on defense.”
So now Patriots fans will need to wait and see who ends up starting when New England faces the New York Jets in Week 8.