Half-Time: New England Patriots, Bailey Zappe Fading at Finish

Bailey Zappe guided the New England Patriots to a shocking early lead against the Kansas City Chiefs but couldn't keep the momentum alive.

It's said it's not about how you start, but how you finish. Quarterback Bailey Zappe's learning that lesson the hard way.

Presumably granted the reigns of the New England Patriots' offense for the rest of the season, Zappe is working through football's ultimate no-win situation: succeed where Mac Jones has failed and you become a pariah for "ruining" the team's draft spot. Sputter, and you become a mainstay on the "potential veteran cuts" lists come next summer.

New Englanders obsessed with the draft board need not worry: New England dropped a 27-17 decision to the Chiefs that, barring further injuries, should serve as Zappe's penultimate start on Gillette Stadium's turf. With Week 15 action over, the Patriots currently own the second pick of the draft, one that could well be used on his successor.

“They adjusted and we adjusted, I just didn’t execute our adjustments, and that was the difference,” Zappe told the Boston Herald. “I’ve just got to get better.”

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Thus, Zappe's latest effort, this one against the Chiefs, was perhaps macabrely perfect considering the situation: the second-year man matched Patrick Mahomes ever move over the first half-hour. 

With Taylor Swift in attendance, teased New England fans with an upset from their wildest dreams to the tune of a 17-of-19, 141-yard outing partly capped off by yet another touchdown pass to Hunter Henry that granted New England a 14-10 lead in the latter stages of the second quarter.

But Kansas City, still burdened with plenty to play for, hunkered down in the second half after ending the first on Mahomes' eight-yard touchdown pass to Jerrick McKinnon. That score was the first stanza of 17 unanswered points before Kevin Harris' second career touchdown somewhat beautified the final scoreboard. It was a steretch that was allowed to continue when Zappe opened the second on an interception to Willie Gay on the Patriots first play from scrimmage. Mahomes found Clyde Edwards-Helaire to create the final margin.

Zappe's effort for the Chiefs was eerily similar to his prior showing, one that saw him build an early lead against a playoff contender (in this case Pittsburgh) before having to sweat things out by the end. Alas, a Chiefs group well-versed in the art of winning wasn't as forgiving as the reeling Steelers, and Zappe's 4-of-12, 41-yard effort in the second half was far from enough to challenge the champs.

"Simply not good enough,” Zappe said of Sunday's work. “Starting out hot in the first half again like we did the previous week, came in here and made adjustments, understood what we wanted to attack, went out in the second half and threw an interception on the first play of the second half, which was terrible on my part. Take away that, you take away seven points, it’s a whole different game.”

Zapped? Former Solution Bailey Now Simply Part of Patriots' QB Problem

Fans of New England (3-11) won't lose any sweat over it: if things pan out, Zappe's brief takeover under center will simply serve as a bad dream on the road back to championship glory. But considering the plethora of medical misfortune that has befallen the quarterback spot around the NFL, Zappe could well be trying to prove he's worth of being a reliable backup.

Such trust, however, obviously requires 60 minutes of soundness, one that Zappe has yet to provide in any of his three starts this season.

Zappe's next chance to prove he's capable of a full hour lands on Sunday when New England engages in a holiday haunt against the Denver Broncos (8:15 p.m. ET, NFL Network).

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