Patriots coach Bill Belichick has decided to have four quarterbacks on the 53-player roster, with Malik Cunningham now joining a roster that already had Mac Jones, Bailey Zappe and Will Grier. But Belichick isn’t saying what role Cunningham will play going forward.

“Malik’s improved a lot during the course of the year, both at receiver and in the kicking game and some of the snaps he’s taken at quarterback,” Belichick said. “Didn’t really get too much of a chance to see him [against the Raiders] but he’s been good to work with, he’s made a lot of improvement, and we’ll see where it goes.”

Belichick did say the athletic Cunningham has shown he belongs, even though on Sunday against the Raiders he was sacked on his only pass attempt and otherwise never got involved in the offense. The Patriots are desperate to improve the offense and win a game so anything can happen. For now, Cunningham should probably only be considered in deep leagues and dynasty leagues. But as always, keep an eye on what's going on in New England.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick is asked if Mac Jones is the team's starting QB this week: "Yeah, we're not making any changes."

Related Players: Bailey Zappe

New England clearly needs to change something up after their back-to-back blowout losses, but it remains to be seen exactly what that will entail. Jones will start Week 6 despite being benched in both of his two prior games.

QB Mac Jones is expected to start Sunday.

Related players: Will Grier, Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham

Howe also reported he's being told this is still an important week of practice for Jones as the Patriots evaluate every position on the roster on the heels of the worst two losses of Bill Belichick’s career. Jones has six turnovers in those two losses. Zappe hasn't shown much in his time either, so the Patriots may feel they don't have another choice but to stick with Jones. Grier and Cunningham could be considered at some point the way this season has gone in New England.

The Patriots have waived backup QB Bailey Zappe, source said. A surprise.

Related players: Mac Jones

Other reports say the team released Cunningham as well. Some say Zappe could draw interest from other teams, especially after looking good filling in for Jones last year. But if not, Zappe could find his way back to New England. Currently, the Patriots have no other QBs on their roster behind Jones.

Bill Belichick said late Friday that he "absolutely" feels the same way about Mac Jones as he did prior to training camp last year when he complimented the quarterback's progress, which marked the New England Patriots coach's strongest vote of confidence as speculation has swirled regarding Jones' future with the team this offseason.

Jones had a down year in the second season of his career and first without offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. Granted, the whole offense was a cringe-fest, but Jones finished with 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in an awful fantasy season. At this point in the draft the team hasn't gotten him any help, using their first three picks on the defensive side of the ball.

Asked directly whether the plan is for Jones to start the final three weeks of the season, Belichick didn’t answer, instead just saying they’re focused on this week’s game against the Bengals.

Related Players: Bailey Zappe

Mac Jones has had a difficult sophomore season, but it's hard to say that the offense would receive a miraculous upgrade with Zappe on the field. It's best to ignore the Patriots quarterback situation for now, and hope that they hire an offensive coordinator ahead of the 2023 season.

Mac Jones' frustration boiled over as an impotent New England Patriots offense failed to produce during Thursday night's 24-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills. The broadcast showed Jones on the sideline at one point, appearing to say, "Throw the f------ ball! The quick game sucks!" The assumption from the majority of viewers was that Jones directed his ire at play-caller Matt Patricia. But the quarterback said after the game it wasn't directed at anyone specifically.

Mac Jones' 7.7 aDOT ranks him 25th in the NFL, while his 6.5 aDOT from this Week 13 matchup would rank 37th/38 qualifying quarterbacks if it were extrapolated over the entire season. The offense was sputtering for most of the game, and all three of Jones' attempts 20+ yards down the field fell incomplete, while he was asked to attempt seven screen passes in his 36 attempts.
Granted, the Bills' defense can certainly be tough at times, and things will ease up over the next two weeks against the Cardinals and Raiders.

Patriots will start Mac Jones Week 8.

Related players: Baily Zappe

Jones took about 90% of the first teams reps in practice today, Yates tweeted. Jones started this past Monday night, but was relieved by Zappe. It's anyone's guess how long of a chance Jones gets this week.

Mac Jones, who has been inactive the past three games, has told teammates his recovery from a high left ankle sprain he suffered Sept. 25 has progressed, with a final hurdle to be cleared in practice. The Patriots' first practice of the week is scheduled for Thursday.

Related Players: Bailey Zappe

Bailey Zappe and Jones's efficiency stats don't look too terribly different on the year, though the team has two impressive wins under their belt in Zappe starts. Neither option should be under consideration outside of 2QB leagues.

Patriots injury report for the first practice before facing the Browns Sunday. Of note: Mac Jones (ankle) is still listed as limited. Damien Harris (hamstring) also limited.

Related players: Bailey Zappe, Rhamondre Stevenson

Zappe lead the Patriots, also helped by the defense, to a shutout victory over the Lions last week. Stevenson ran 25 times for 161 yards after Harris got hurt, so if Harris misses this week, Stevenson would be a very good fantasy play getting the bulk of the work. Zappe would get the start again if Jones can't go, but Jones did practice last week and seemed close to playing.