The New England Patriots' quarterback situation appeared to be straightened out ahead of Monday night's game vs. the Chicago Bears. Mac Jones got the start over Bailey Zappe in his return from injury, but it wasn't long before the QB controversy reached a new level.
Jones was replaced by Zappe after throwing an interception in the second quarter. The 2021 first-round draft pick played only three series before Bill Belichick went with Zappe for the remainder of the game.
Zappe led a couple of touchdown drives but couldn't maintain the pace in the second half, leading to a stunning 33-14 defeat. So not only do the Patriots enter Week 8 with another loss, they also have even more question marks at the quarterback position than they started with.
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Curran: Unanswered questions abound after baffling loss to Bears
Belichick insists his plan all along was to use both Jones and Zappe on Monday night and Jones' performance wasn't the reason behind his benching. So why did the Patriots head coach decide to roll with both QBs? Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry shared their thoughts on a new episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast.
Patriots Talk: Figuring out the ‘why’ of Belichick’s quarterback shuffling | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
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"I think he loves it. I think he loves dragging it out. I don't think he took the Bears seriously. And he embraces being unconventional," Curran said of Belichick. "So it struck him as, 'You know what? (Jones) wants to play, he's dying to play, he's coming back from the ankle. Let's let him play, see how it goes, then we'll go to Bailey. But we should be able to handle this one."
Perry believes this was a case of Belichick underestimating his competition.
"This was the Chicago Bears. You were supposed to beat the Bears no matter who was in there behind center," he said. "I felt that way, I know you felt that way, I don't know that the Patriots felt that way but James White told us on Next Pats that was sort of his inkling, not that he had been told. But he said maybe they felt like they could win no matter who was playing quarterback."
"I don't think this is something they would have done in a divisional game against the Jets. I just would have a really hard time believing that they would try to pull this off."
Belichick and Co. have plenty to straighten out before next Sunday's game at MetLife Stadium.
Also discussed in the episode: Do all signs point to Belichick not believing in Mac Jones? Why let Jones play in the first place? Assessing Jones’ regression. And why is the offense run differently under Bailey Zappe?
Check out the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast on the NBC Sports Boston Podcast Network, or watch on YouTube.