'Blank Space': Bill Belichick's 'Praise' For New England Patriots' Bailey Zappe: ‘Pretty Consistent’

New England Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe has seemingly won over his teammates with a cool, confident demeanor. Yet, his consistency has caught the eye of coach Bill Belichick.

FOXBORO — Despite some second-half sputters during the New England Patriots Week 14 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers last Thursday night, quarterback Bailey Zappe was able to engineer three impressive scoring drives en route to a 21-18 victory. 

Throughout the game, Zappe exuded a cool confidence, which clearly made an impression not only on his teammates, but also on his head coach. 

In fact, during his Monday appearance on WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show, Bill Belichick praised Zappe for his steadiness since taking the reins from incumbent starter Mac Jones just two weeks earlier. 

"Bailey's been pretty consistent,” Belichick said. “For the most part, he's done a good job of taking care of the ball at the quarterback position. We haven't had a lot of negative plays, turnovers and just negative plays, penalties that are related to the quarterback position, like delay of game, things like that. He's done a good job of managing the team and taking care of the ball.”

Despite entering Week 14 on the heels of a 6-0 shutout loss to the Los Angeles Chargers just five days earlier, the 24-year-old demonstrated significant improvement in making his reads, as well as his decision-making. He opened the game by driving the Pats 75 yards on eight plays, capping the series with an 11-yard touchdown pass in the flat to running back Ezekeil Elliott. Zappe followed up his opening drive performance by finding team captain Hunter Henry for a pair of second-quarter scores — for eight and 24 yards respectively. Not only did he set his new career-high in touchdown passes, he also became the first Patriots player with three touchdowns in the first half since Tom Brady did so against the New York Jets in Dec. 2018.

Belichick and Bailey? Not quite Belichick and Brady, but at least "pretty consistent." / Cred: USA Today Sports Images

When faced with a greater amount of pressure in the second half, however, Zappe struggled. The Western Kentucky product lofted a handful of head-scratching throws and missed a few open targets throughout both stanzas. Steelers linebacker Mykal Walker also picked off a crosser deflected by linebacker Elandon Roberts in the closing seconds of the third quarter. He also fell victim to a pair of sacks. 

Still, it should be noted that Belichick has seemingly been impressed by the manner in which Zappe takes his struggles in stride. The Pats second-year quarterback has done a better job, to date, of compartmentalizing his mistakes and moving on from them in a timely fashion — perhaps better than that of his predecessor. 

"There's always plays that players and coaches can do a little better when you look back over the game, Belichick added. But again, everybody who plays in the game feels that way. Bailey works hard, tries to correct his mistakes, tries to learn each week and learn each day. So I'm sure he'll continue to do that. 

Patriots-Steelers Snaps & Grades: Zappe Days Are Here Again?

Ultimately, Zappe’s demeanor, poise and prowess were enough to provide the Patriots with their best offensive performance since Week 7. It also appears to have earned him the starting spot for at least one more week — though the ‘HC of the NEP’ still remains quizzically coy on his identity. Nonetheless, the young quarterback’s desire to improve is likley to keep him under the watchful eye of the four remaining games on the Pats schedule. 

"Good preparation and attention to details certainly puts him on the right path to better performance in the games. That's what we're all here for."

New England will return to the practice fields on Tuesday to begin preparation for their Week 15 matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs at 1 p.m. on Sunday from Gillette Stadium. 

---