Patriots OC seems to respond to Bailey Zappe chatter

New England Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien insisted Tuesday nobody in the building has lost faith in backup quarterback Bailey Zappe after undrafted rookie Malik Cunningham replaced Zappe as New England's QB2 for what became this past Sunday's 21-17 loss at the Las Vegas Raiders.

"I think it’s week-to-week," O’Brien said about the club's backup quarterback situation, as shared by Keagan Stiefel of NESN. "I think maybe you’re asking, 'Have we lost confidence in Bailey?' We haven’t lost any confidence in Bailey."

Zappe took mop-up duty snaps after head coach Bill Belichick benched starting quarterback Mac Jones during blowout defeats in Week 4 and Week 5, and some thought the 2022 fourth-round draft pick could receive significant playing time versus the Raiders if the Patriots needed an offensive spark at Allegiant Stadium. 

However, that was before Andrew Callahan and Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald reported last week that "team sources" said both Zappe and 2019 third-round draft choice Will Grier were deemed "unfit" to play. That story also mentioned that Zappe failed to impress working under O’Brien and even "stunk" this past summer. 

Cunningham, meanwhile, recorded a total of six offensive snaps against the Raiders. While Jones is expected to remain atop the depth chart when the 1-5 Patriots host the 4-2 Buffalo Bills this coming Sunday, it sounds like Cunningham could receive additional reps at multiple positions during that AFC East clash. 

"We felt like that was the best way to go about it for the Raiders game based on where we were from an injury standpoint and things like that," O’Brien added during his comments. "'How do we get Malik Cunningham into the game?' That was the best way to get him into the game." 

The Patriots seemingly are only a few losses away from having nothing to lose as it pertains to giving Zappe even a single start this fall. As of Tuesday afternoon, OddsChecker listed New England as an eight-and-a-half-point home underdog against Buffalo.