Mac Jones made his return to the New England Patriots starting line-up on Monday night against the Chicago Bears, but head coach Bill Belichick has played down his decision to withdraw him after just one quarter.
After missing three games with a high ankle sprain, Jones was plunged back into the starting line-up with Bailey Zappe looking on from the bench. Zappe was the Patriot's third-choice quarterback at the start of the season, but has shone in recent weeks.
Zappe's rise has come out of nowhere, and it's put unexpected pressure on Jones to perform. Jones had a nightmare start to the game on Monday as he threw and interception at the end of his second unsuccessful drive, but Belichick's decision to remove him was not 'performance based'.
Jones threw for just 13 yards on Monday with a 50 per-cent completion rate, and was removed early into the second quarter and replaced by Zappe. To make matters worse for Jones, Zappe quickly helped inspire two touchdowns for the Patriots, although they still lost the game 33-14.
The Bears took full advantage of the Patriot's issues, with quarterback Justin Fields having one of his better games of the season so far. And now Patriots head coach Belichick has even more of a dilemma, after Zappe outshone Jones once again.
While Jones was out injured, Belichick was grateful for Zappe stepping up. But there's no excuse for Jones now he's fit, and the Patriots appear to look more threatening when Zappe is in the side.
Many thought Belichick noticed this, which would explain why Jones was brought off in the second quarter. But Belichick told reporters that it was always in their plans to switch things up mid-game.
"I told the quarterbacks that we were going to play both of them, and that's what we did," Belichick said. That's not what it was [performance], but you can write whatever you want to write. That's not what it was."
However, Belichick admitted that the initial plan was for Jones to later re-enter the match, but he changed his mind as the Bears began to run away with the victory.
"The score got out of hand," he added. "I didn't think that was the right thing to do."
The Patriots next face the New York Jets on Sunday, and all eyes will be who Belichick's picks as his starter, and whether he sticks with them. But it's certainly not the easiest of situations to approach for the legendary coach, but remember, the last time his back-up outshone the starter this clearly, Tom Brady was unearthed.
