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The New England Patriots will roll the dice with quarterback Mac Jones at least one more time against the Las Vegas Raiders, despite his recent struggles.
If the Patriots need to bench Jones again, the baton won’t go to the most likely candidate in fans’ minds — Bailey Zappe. Instead, the Patriots will give third-string Will Grier a shot. He was the emergency quarterback for the past three weeks — meaning he was eligible to play only if Jones and Zappe got injured.
“From talking to people around the team, I think, if Mac Jones doesn’t succeed this week — if he doesn’t retain his job — I think it’s Will Grier’s,” Boston Sports Journal’s Greg Bedard said October 10 during “Felger & Mazz” on 98.5 The Sports Hub.
New England signed Grier in September off of the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad. A third-round draft pick from West Virginia in 2019, Grier was a backup over the past four years with the Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys.
The Patriots brought Grier aboard after a carousel of third quarterbacks since the offseason — Trace McSorley followed by Matt Corral and Ian Book. New England released all three in subsequent order.
While Grier has been in the league longer than Zappe, the former Mountaineers star hasn’t played a regular season game since 2019 for the Panthers. Grier didn’t inspire tons of organizational confidence in his two starts in 2019 — both losses. He threw for 228 yards, completed only 53.8% of his passes, and he tossed four interceptions.
Bailey Zappe Hasn’t Improved; Wheels Fell Off for Mac Jones
Zappe, however, hasn’t looked any more impressive in his two brief appearances this season. He completed 38.9% of his passes (7-of-18) for 79 yards.
That’s a far cry from his promising rookie year, when he completed 70.7% of his passes for 781 yards for 5 touchdowns versus 3 interceptions in four games. Zappe also went 2-0 in his starts, and a quarterback controversy appeared to ensue and continue this offseason.
However, Zappe’s play regressed in the preseason, and Jones kept his job. The Patriots also waived Zappe, but then they claimed him off of waivers and signed him to the practice squad before the season.
Jones, who had a down year in 2022, showed signs of a rebounding in the first three weeks of 2023, throwing for 748 yards and 5 touchdowns against 2 interceptions. But the wheels fell off in the past two weeks, with 250 yards passing for no touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Jones also fumbled twice in that span as the Patriots suffered back-to-back losses of 30-plus points for the first time since 1970.
Bill Belichick to Stick With Mac Jones in Week 6
Despite Jones’ rapid decline, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick confirmed on October 11 in his press conference that he would stick with Jones in Week 6. Belichick has plenty on the line despite all of his prior success with the team — six Super Bowl wins between 2002 and 2019.
The longtime coach hasn’t seen a losing streak like this in his time with New England, and Belichick will need either Jones or backups Zappe and Grier to help dig the Patriots out of it.
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