Patriots Belichick, O’Brien Reaction to Zappe's Play: ‘Right Direction’?

The New England Patriots earned their fourth win of the season over the Denver Broncos on Christmas Eve, thanks in part to the improved play of quarterback Bailey Zappe.

FOXBORO — New England Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe may yet to have experienced his ‘ephiphany.’ However, he certainly exhibited a great deal of progress during the team’s 26-23 victory over the Denver Broncos on Christmas Eve. 

In fact, Zappe’s on-field strides are not only significant enough to catch the eyes of coach Bill Belichick and coordinator Bill O’Brien, but also to draw their praise.  

“Bailey’s continuing to improve,” Belichick said of Zappe during his Tuesday appearance on WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show. “He’s moving in the right direction.” 

Having played perhaps his best game as a pro against Denver Week 16, Zappe finished the game going 25-of-33 for 256 yards with the two third-quarter touchdowns. In each of his scoring drives, the 24-year-old delivered red zone completions to running back Ezekiel Elliott and tight end Mike Gesicki respectively. After all was said and done, the Pats starter’s performance earned him an 88.9 position grade from Pro Football Focus (PFF) — the highest awarded to a Pats quarterback by the media entity since Mac Jones earned am 89.9 in Week 17 of his rookie season of 2021. 

New England Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe (4) prepares to pass in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High / Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Considering how his Christmas Eve began, no one would have blamed Zappe for anticipating a supernatural visit from the chain-clad ghost of Jacob Marley. In this case, the ominous narrative hook of Zappe’s ‘Christmas Carol’ was delivered by Denver defender D.J. Jones —who strip-sacked the Pats starter and recovered the loose ball himself at the New England five-yard line on the night’s first play from scrimmage. Though the Pats defense delivered a four-and-out on the ensuing preventive stand (keeping Denver from reaching the end-zone) a string of three-and-out drives, sprinkled with only a 33-yard Chad Ryland field goal would define the Western Kentucky product’s first-half showing. 

Still, Zappe remained undaunted after his first-snap mishap. The second-year signal caller played turnover-free football for the remainder of the game — ensuring that none of his 33 pass attempts be labeled “turnover worthy” by PFF. Unsurprisingly, Bill Belichick noted that Zappe — who had thrown at least one interception in each of his last four appearances — has worked hard to correct his issues with turnovers. 

“With the quarterback position, the most important thing is ball security and protecting the team and not turning the ball over,” Belichick said. “That’s definitely gotten better for him.”

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Zappe’s performance was his ability to recognize and adapt to Denver’s numerous defensive looks. — often in the face of pressure. Having bene blitzed on more than 40 percent of his drop backs, Zappe did a much better job of recognizing the Broncos looks, which included a mix of nickel, dime and base defense formations. As such, Zappe successfully parlayed his confidence into taking more shots downfield, while being more aggressive in third-down situations — much to the approval, and possibly delight, of his head coach. 

“Denver had multiple defensive looks that we had to deal with. — more than what most teams run — and that was challenging,” Belichick said. “But I thought he did a good job of that. (He’s) moving in the right direction.”

Though several of Zappe’s adjustments led to marked on-field improvement on Sunday night, his most-important growth with be achieved thought experience — something which Bill O’Brien hopes his quarterback continues to seek. 

“Bailey’s a very consistent guy. He’s calm. He’s poised. He’s got that,” O’Brien said. “What he doesn’t have is experience ... I mean, he’s gaining experience. I’m not saying he doesn’t have any experience ... you cannot discount experience and what that means to your career. The more reps you get at practice, or the more reps you get in games, that means a lot to your career if you take advantage of it.”

With only two games remaining on New England’s schedule, a change at quarterback [barring injury] appears to be e nearly non-existent. As such, Zappe will lead the Pats into a hostile environment on New Year’s Eve to take on the Buffalo Bills. Despite their being no love lost between Bills Mafia and the team which made two-plus decades of their fandom a miserable experience, the Bills will be playing for playoff positioning, thus pushing as hard as they can for a victory. 

Patriots-Broncos Notebook: Ryland, Zappe Deliver ‘Good Cheer’ with Christmas Eve Win

In turn, Zappe must counteract Buffalo’s intensity by exuding his calm, cool and collected demeanor. All the while, he will be gaining valuable experience for 2024 and beyond. Whether that means a chance to be New England’s starter next season has yet to be determined. Still, his confidence must allow him to continue reaching for the proverbial stars, while keeping his feet firmly planted on the ground.

“Zap has done a good job of, and hopefully, he’ll just continue to be the same guy,” O’Brien said. “Don’t change. Be consistent and keep trying to get better. This league is all about improvement and who can get better the fastest. Hopefully he keeps that attitude.”

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