The Jets need to plan an attack for Mac.
Mac Jones will start at quarterback on Sunday for the Patriots, according to multiple reports. Patriots coach Bill Belichick declined to reveal his starter at his news conference on Wednesday, but word leaked later in the day that Jones would get the start over rookie Bailey Zappe.
Jones started Monday night’s loss to the Bears but was pulled after three series and replaced with Zappe for the rest of the game. It was Jones’ first action since Sept. 25 when he suffered a high left ankle sprain. Belichick said the team intended to play both quarterbacks in the game against the Bears.
It is unclear if the Patriots will have the same plan against the Jets. Jones was not listed on the injury report on Wednesday.
“We’ll see how it goes today,” Belichick repeated multiple times during his press conference.
Jets coach Robert Saleh said the Patriots’ offense would not look much different with either quarterback.
Bailey Zappe (l.) and Mac Jones USA TODAY Sports“Their offense is going to be the same regardless, they’ve got things that they like,” Saleh said. “The quarterbacks have different styles to their pass games, so we’ll be well aware of both, but their system is their system and it’s a very good system. Hats off to [Matt] Patricia and Joe Judge, they’re doing a great job with that group, so we’re expecting, we know the nuances, it’s just preparing for their system.”
As for the Jets’ quarterback, Saleh threw his support behind Zach Wilson again on Wednesday. The Jets are 4-0 since Wilson returned from a knee injury but he has not been a major factor in the last three games. He has thrown for 221 yards combined in the last two games and has not thrown a touchdown pass in three weeks. Saleh credited the Packers and Broncos for limiting Wilson.
“You just look at the last two defenses. They’ve made a lot of really, really good quarterbacks look really, really, really bad,” Saleh said. “Zach is not the first or the last that it’s going to happen to. Those are two really good pass defenses that we’ve played. We’ve still got a lot of faith in Zach and he’s going to continue to have improvement. For sure, you want to see dramatic improvement every week but the other guys get paid, too. We’re not wavering on where he is. We still think he’s getting a lot better. With the division we’re in, every single week is going to be a tremendous challenge. At the end of the day, he’s only going to get better for all of this.”
WR Corey Davis (knee) did not practice and Saleh said he is day-to-day. DE John Franklin-Myers (illness) did not practice. LT Duane Brown (shoulder), DE Jermaine Johnson (ankle), LB Quincy Williams (ankle) and safety Ashtyn Davis (hamstring) were all limited in practice.







