Why did Bill Belichick draft a QB?
Last impressions loom nearly as big as first impressions. For Bill Belichick, his most recent football memory is one of anger and frustration. Heading into the playoffs, the New England Patriots were a dark-horse team to win the Super Bowl, despite having a rookie quarterback under center. However, those dreams were dashed in an explosive fashion.
It wasn't the Super Bowl-winning team that blew their doors off by a score of 47-17, but the once-inferior little brother of the Buffalo Bills. During the Tom Brady era, the Patriots were the big brother, and the Bills were always chasing the Patriots. At the end of the 2021 football season, it became clear that the roles had reversed.
History has to separate Bill Belichick the head football coach and Bill Belichick the general manager
One is the greatest and the other is a average team builder who hit the lottery in 2000 and benefitted from Bill Parcells’ draft picks
Bill Belichick knew this and has been sitting on that feeling for several months. One of the quickest ways to change a football team is by changing the thrower of the football. While the Patriots didn't go crazy in free agency at the position, they surprised many with their fourth-round selection of Bailey Zappe.
Is Bill Belichick setting up a silent quarterback competition?
Some say the pick was the perfect choice for a quality backup. Considering Tom Brady was drafted in the sixth round; however, a fourth-round quarterback under Belichick still has starting potential. If the head coach wanted a backup quarterback, he had one in Brian Hoyer. Hoyer could also act as a mentor to Mac Jones.
Belichick 100% reads my tweets. twitter.com/nfldraftscout/…
Instead, the head coach and general manager went with a more inexperienced quarterback than Jones to serve as his backup. Meaning, Jones would be the mentor in the relationship. However, considering how close in experience the two quarterbacks are, this won't be a mentor-understudy relationship. This will be a competition.
Of course, in public, the two will put on a brave face and deny or sidestep any questions about it. Behind closed doors, this will be a competition. The two may not even be informed that it is a competition. The competition could last months or well into next season, but it is happening.
Zappe's biggest selling point wasn't his arm or his speed. His biggest selling point was his class-leading Wonderlic score at the position, according to Boston.com. In the test that measured the quarterback's intelligence, Zappe dominated. This was a massive selling point for the head coach as he loves to alter game plans on a weekly basis.
Meaning, Zappe will need to be a flexible thinker and adapt on the fly. This has been a core facet of what the head coach and general manager looks for in a player. Meaning, with time, Zappe could eventually play himself into the starting role if he proves to have the mind that Belichick wants in his players.
In other words, if Mac Jones faceplants in 2022 or shows little improvement, Belichick won't settle. He'll test the waters with Zappe, if needed. At this point, the head coach is fighting to regain his glory at the top of the football world and seemingly will pull any lever he can if he believes it will return him to his former glory.