Patriots

NFL Insider on Mac Jones: ‘You know he was dying out there’ watching Bailey Zappe play

Mac Jones was at practice on Wednesday and is reportedly pushing to play on Sunday against Detroit.

By Khari Thompson

updated on October 5, 2022

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Mac Jones attended practice on Wednesday and made some throws.

He believes he can play on Sunday and is pushing to make it happen, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

“If he’s listed as limited today, I would say at least that means he has a shot of being out there on Sunday,” Rapoport said. “He is the Patriots’ starter. You know he was dying out there when Bailey Zappe was going toe to toe with Aaron Rodgers. If it is humanly possible for Mac Jones to be out there on the field this week, he will be.”

Rapoport later reported that Jones was indeed “limited” in practice Wednesday.

He took first reps ahead of Bailey Zappe and newly-signed Garrett Gilbert, according to The Boston Globe‘s Jim McBride, who also noted that Brian Hoyer was not at practice.

Hoyer left Sunday’s game in the first half with a head injury. Zappe finished the game in his place, helping the Patriots take Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay to overtime in an eventual loss.

When asked before practice if Zappe will start on Sunday, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said:

“We’ll see. I don’t know. Just take it day-by-day.”

Jones missed Sunday’s game entirely with a high-ankle sprain. Last week, it was reported that he was expected to miss “multiple games” due to the severity of the sprain. He attended practice last Friday but did not participate.

“He’s definitely made progress,” said Belichick.

With Jones’ and Hoyer’s injuries, there are plenty of questions about the status of the Patriots’ quarterback situation. Belichick dodged most of them and was accidentally interrupted in the middle of one.

He responded with a bit of humor.

“I’m glad you did,” Belichick said of the interruption with a smile, and joked:

“I was going to go into great depth about the quarterback situation.”