It looks like Zappe Hour ended Thursday for the Patriots. Though Bill Belichick still won’t publicly name his starting quarterback for Monday night’s game against the Bears, all signs are pointing towards Mac Jones.
Reports about Jones’ readiness served as the perfect counter to Zappe Mania.
Earlier this week, it looked like there was a nascent smear campaign coming for Jones. Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer reported Jones bucked the Patriots’ advice and didn’t get surgery on his high ankle sprain, and said the relationship between the two sides had “gone a little sideways.” Then ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio chimed in, writing there are “uncharacteristic rumblings surrounding the relationship between Jones and the Patriots.”
But it doesn’t seem like those “rumblings” were based on concrete info. When pressed for more details on “The Greg Hill Show,” Florio demurred. “I’ve just mentioned it a few times, and I’ve written about it in a vague, loose way that something is amiss,” he said. “I didn’t go to journalism school. I’ve learned it all on the job the last 20 years.”
One of those skills Florio has learned is the art of pumping a scoop. But for whatever reason, he chose to downplay what he wrote about Jones on his own website.
Ben Volin also downplayed his “report, or call it whatever you want” about Jones needing an attitude adjustment. We later learned Volin’s source was a Patriots fan who pranked him over Twitter direct message.
Volin’s erroneous anecdote aside, there was clear momentum building against Jones. But on Thursday, that all changed. It seems as if Jones’ camp, or pro-Jones people within the Patriots, wanted to counter the narrative.
ESPN’s Mike Reiss — arguably the most respected reporter on the Patriots beat — wrote Thursday morning that Jones “expects to play” against the Bears. The Athletic’s Jeff Howe followed up with a tweet about how there’s “no QB controversy in New England.” Citing “sources,” Howe said that Jones will start when he’s healthy enough to return.
NFL Media’s Mike Giardi concurred, adding “there is another level this offense believes it can reach, and the locker room belief is that Jones is the guy that can get them there, perhaps as soon as Monday night.”
Video of Jones looking mobile at practice Thursday seemed to seal the deal: the 2021 first-round pick is back. And once again, he’s in control of the narrative.
