Patriots Tease Starting QB Against Steelers

Pittsburgh — In a short week, the Pittsburgh Steelers were getting ready to play the New England Patriots, but they didn’t know who would start at quarterback in Week 14. Bailey Zappe, a second-year quarterback, is expected to start for the team this week.

Zappe reported earlier this week that Bill Belichick, the head coach, has communicated with the quarterback room regarding starting lineup decisions for the Steelers game.

“Coach has made it very apparent, but I’ll let him make the public announcement. That is currently confidential. That’s with him whenever he makes the announcement,” Zappe remarked.

With an average of just 12.3 points per game, the Patriots are the lowest scoring offense in the league. Their last three games have resulted in 0, 7, and 6 points.

During his weekly press conference, head coach Mike Tomlin stated that he isn’t too concerned about the quarterback position in New England this week.

“I’m really concerned about the quarterback position and the things that they’re doing at the quarterback position from our preparedness standpoint,” Tomlin stated. “They have two guys, Mac Jones and Zap Bailey Zappe, who are kind of similar, but Malik Cunningham might be really different. We are paying attention to that as we get ready because they had all three up just yesterday.

“It’s important to pay attention to the quarterback mobility component, especially during a short week. Fortunately, we play enough quarterback mobility to avoid starting from scratch and ensure that we’re solid. Since you only get so many physical reps during a short week, hopefully our cumulative history against quarterback mobility will help us make some quick decisions and other moves. Therefore, they have your attention when you’re looking at something, possibly something like wildcat, quarterback mobility, or quarterback runs that are designed.”