Paul Perillo Made an Excellent Point on Mac vs. Zappe

[State]

Zappe doesn’t have the pedigree of Mac, but he is showing he’s just as good of a QB. Maybe better.

This could get weird as a team offers two firsts for acquiring Mac.

The only question mark is BZ’s ability to throw the deep ball.

 

[RIpats88]

Per Curran's opinion. I have not seen anyone (Curran included) unequivocally state, "per my sources, Jones is the starter". He said "I think", and "can't imagine". He's speculating based on his own opinion, which is worth about as much as yours and mine.

Until BB names Jones the starter, or a reporter with clout goes on the record with a source indicating as much, all we have is speculation based on subjective opinion.

I have nothing against Jones - I just think Zappe has played the quarterback position better than Jones has this season, and for that reason I'd like to see Zappe continue to start.

Upset? No. Disappointed? Yeah, maybe. I'm not convinced the scenario that will disappoint me is going to happen, though.

Well you likely will be disappointed next Monday night then...

Mac nearly played yesterday. That isn't the sign of a coaching staff prepared to bench him.

 

[State]

A lot of it is the emergence of blue chip guard play on the offensive line and an engaged Trent Brown who is dominating. An effective offensive line and Rhamandre Stephenson, doing a great Corey Dillon impersonation, opens up the backend for a quick, accurate, and confident QB like BZ.

Mac isn’t as decisive. Zappe is a natural.

 

[jah]

How about the team's two best WR's Meyers and Thornton were mostly absent for Mac? And Bourne was benched.

It's tough to look good with Parker, Aggie, and Lil Jordan as your big three.

Thornton is a lot of good things but it seems like a serious stretch to call him a top 2 Pats WR after 2 games where he failed to eclipse 10 yards per catch.

I have high hopes for him but he's really still just getting his feet wet.

 

[catent]

How about the team's two best WR's Meyers and Thornton were mostly absent for Mac? And Bourne was benched.

It's tough to look good with Parker, Aggie, and Lil Jordan as your big three.

Meyers has been largely absent for Jones - huh? Meyers caught 13 passes for 150 yards in weeks 1 & 2 combined.

Parker is no good? He's gone for 250+ yards with over 20 YPC this season. He went 5 for 156 against Baltimore, a game Jones played in.

Bourne with Jones: 7 receptions, 115 yards
Bourne with Zappe: 4 receptions, 41 yards

What about Hunter Henry? Jonnu Smith? They've largely been present all season, for both QBs.

Thornton is the only one Zappe has had the advantage of playing with that Jones hasn't. Thornton has accounted for 6 receptions and 44 yards of Zappe's overall 51 completions and 596 yards.

Jones wasn't playing with a handicap this season. He just didn't play very well and turned the ball too often.

Maybe Jones gets the job back and begins to play at a high-level, but I see no good reason to excuse his play while simultaneously downplaying what Zappe has done.

 

[catent]

Well you likely will be disappointed next Monday night then...

Mac nearly played yesterday. That isn't the sign of a coaching staff prepared to bench him.

It seems you think Jones nearly played yesterday, and you think he will return to being the starter. Whether that's actually consistent with what the people inside the building are thinking, we'll see.

 

[Ivan]

Zappe has played really well, but Jones will start when he’s healthy enough to play again. However, if Jones continues to turn the ball over then Belichick won’t hesitate to go back to Zappe. It may seem harsh to some but this is the best thing that could happen to both of these guys, the competition is going to push both to get much better. And if either of them can’t handle that pressure then they don’t have what it takes to be a great QB in this league.

 

[Wozzy]

Whether Mac or misses another week or comes back next week and is handed his job back, if he starts throwing to the other team again he'll be pinned to the bench.

He should have been benched for Hoyer after the Ravens game regardless of his getting hurt... he was playing poorly. He'd thrown 5 picks in three starts, there were at least four or more balls that hit defenders square in the hands that could have made that total much higher.

I don't care if Zappe is playing the presechool version of this offense, if that's the case they should stay in preschool. Turnovers are the most important stat in football after points.

 

[Ivan]

We also have yet to see Zappe in game situations where he has to be ing them back from being down by multiple scores, where interceptions are far more likely. We should have a really good idea where both of these guys are at by the end of this season.

 

[yukon cornelius]

Still don't buy it.

This isn't a Brissett game-plan against Houston they're giving Zappe. He's getting into/out of plays at the LOS, identifying free rushers, throwing the ball downfield (although he has yet to connect on a true deep shot). A pass of his against Detroit travelled 50 yards in the air before dropping (it fell incomplete, but it was a pretty deep pass).

Baltimore is used as the example of the offense's potential under Jones - he threw eight passes of 20+ yards that game. Zappe, against Cleveland, threw six passes of 20+ yards, for a total of 300+ yards and 2 TDs ... you don't do that with a limited game-plan and training wheels on.

And even putting aside what I think is a weak argument re: game-plan to explain Zappe's success, the fact of the matter is that his pocket presence, field vision, and poise cannot be game-planned or handheld.

It really boggles my mind to hear take-after-take-after-take undermining Zappe's performance to this point. It seems to me that a lot of people aren't able to pickup on the nuances of playing the QB position and identify the subtle (but critically important) traits that make for really good QBs. It's only 2-3 games, but Zappe has demonstrated some legitimately high quality QB play.

how many of zappe's 20+ were YAC? because his average throw yesterday was 5.9 yards downfield.....

 

[Triumph]

Is Curran on cocaine?

Since when is a 3 INT game vs the Ravens "Dynamic'? Cmon Man.

 

[catent]

how many of zappe's 20+ were YAC? because his average throw yesterday was 5.9 yards downfield.....

Jones' average depth of target in his three games is 5.5 yards. Zappe is 4.9 yards. Based on season averages, that is good for 3rd and 8th highest in the league, respectively.

Zappe's 4.9 against Cleveland was good for 6th highest of all QBs in week 6. For example, Mahomes average depth of target yesterday against Buffalo was 3.8.

So both of the QBs (including Zappe) are throwing the ball downfield at a higher than average rate compared to the rest of the league.

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[Triumph]

3 words

Let Zappe throw deep.

 

[Family]

Meyers has been largely absent for Jones - huh? Meyers caught 13 passes for 150 yards in weeks 1 & 2 combined.

Parker is no good? He's gone for 250+ yards with over 20 YPC this season. He went 5 for 156 against Baltimore, a game Jones played in.

Bourne with Jones: 7 receptions, 115 yards
Bourne with Zappe: 4 receptions, 41 yards

What about Hunter Henry? Jonnu Smith? They've largely been present all season, for both QBs.

Thornton is the only one Zappe has had the advantage of playing with that Jones hasn't. Thornton has accounted for 6 receptions and 44 yards of Zappe's overall 51 completions and 596 yards.

Jones wasn't playing with a handicap this season. He just didn't play very well and turned the ball too often.

Maybe Jones gets the job back and begins to play at a high-level, but I see no good reason to excuse his play while simultaneously downplaying what Zappe has done.

My bad. I thought Meyers missed week 2, but Parker was a no show for Mac and accounted for almost all the interceptions.

Borne's statistics actually make the case for Mac. Look at the snap counts. Lil Jordan was getting more than Bourne during Mac's tenure. Mac got more out of less.

The team is expecting more out of Mac than Zappe, which is fair. I wasn't making excuses for Mac. They are asking him to do more than Zappe.

 

[Wozzy]

The Pats season high in passing yards is Mac's 302 against the Ravens.

Yesterday Zappe threw for 301... do we get fewer style points because he didn't throw downfield as much?

Does the NFL dock us points for not being exciting enough?

Winning is the only thing that matters.

Making better decisions is the exact reason I said Mac should be benched midway through the Ravens game for Hoyer... long before "Zappe fever" was a thing.

I don't care if Mac starts next week, if he makes poor decisions again he'll get yanked quickly.

 

[Family]

Thornton is a lot of good things but it seems like a serious stretch to call him a top 2 Pats WR after 2 games where he failed to eclipse 10 yards per catch.

I have high hopes for him but he's really still just getting his feet wet.

His speed demands attention. This is not true of anyone else they have.

 

[Wozzy]

My bad. I thought Meyers missed week 2, but Parker was a no show for Mac and accounted for almost all the interceptions.

Borne's statistics actually make the case for Mac. Look at the snap counts. Lil Jordan was getting more than Bourne during Mac's tenure. Mac got more out of less.

The team is expecting more out of Mac than Zappe, which is fair. I wasn't making excuses for Mac. They are asking him to do more than Zappe.

Blaming Parker for Mac's poor decision to under throw him is making excuses for Mac... that's exactly what it is.

 

[Betterthanmost]

How about the team's two best WR's Meyers and Thornton were mostly absent for Mac? And Bourne was benched.

It's tough to look good with Parker, Aggie, and Lil Jordan as your big three.

Very good point, however, Mac looked like a rookie last year, with Zappe, his calmness makes it look like someone who has played in the league for a while. I am sure his rookie moments will come but I feel his ceiling is very high. He has this meanness and focus about him that I like a lot

 

[Triumph]

Mac will be back for the Bears.

Zappe definitely passed the 1st test with flying colors.

 

[Wozzy]

We also have yet to see Zappe in game situations where he has to be ing them back from being down by multiple scores, where interceptions are far more likely. We should have a really good idea where both of these guys are at by the end of this season.

There's a reason for that.

Mac turning it over is the biggest reason we lost those early games.