The New England Patriots shocked a lot of people when they moved on from second-year quarterback Bailey Zappe, only to add him to their practice squad the next day.
During Thursday’s “Patriots Unfiltered” podcast, Patriots.com’s Evan Lazar reported that Bailey Zappe’s camp was “blindsided” by the team’s decision to move on from him on cutdown day.
When asked if there was a conversation held prior to the cut, Lazar chimed in saying “there was not” a conversation prior to the decision, thus leaving Zappe’s camp blindsided.
“The word that I got from somebody in Zappe’s camp was blindsided. ‘We were as blindsided as you,'” Lazar said.
After cutdown day, the Patriots placed wide receiver Tyquan Thornton on injured reserve, opening up a roster spot. The Patriots ended up claiming Matt Corral from the Carolina Panthers to ultimately fill the QB2 slot behind Jones, leaving Zappe on the practice squad.
Some believe that Zappe might have played his last snap in New England, as the Patriots are continuing to rid themselves of the Matt Patricia offense, while bringing in more players that fit Bill O’Brien’s system.
There’s a Bill O’Brien connection with Corral, who played under Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss. Kiffin was the former offensive coordinator under Alabama coach Nick Saban. O’Brien served as the offensive coordinator under Saban for the previous two seasons.
That means Corral should have experience with the Patriots’ style of offense, thus raising even more questions regarding Zappe’s future with the team.
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