FOXBORO, Mass. — Yes, we’re doing this again.
Bill Belichick on Wednesday declined to announce which Patriots quarterback would start this Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Gillette Stadium.
“I’m not going to make any announcements on our lineup at any position,” New England’s head coach said before the team’s first Week 13 practice. “It doesn’t matter what the position is. We’ll see how practice goes and see if everybody’s ready. I hope everybody’s ready to go. We’ll see what the injury situation is, and we’ll go with who we think is best on Sunday.”
Last week, Patriots players did not learn until after their final practice who would be starting at QB against the New York Giants. Mac Jones ultimately did so but was removed after an ugly first half and replaced by Bailey Zappe. The pair combined for no touchdowns and three interceptions, and the Patriots lost 10-7.
Will Belichick take a different approach this week?
“Everybody’s got their own job to do, and hopefully that’s what they’re focused on,” he replied. “Not what everybody else is doing. That’s what we all need to do: focus on what our job is, do the best we can at it and don’t worry about what everybody else is doing. That would help all of us.”
Jones started all 11 games this season but was benched in four of them, including the last two. He threw at least one interception in all nine of New England’s losses to date.
“We haven’t won enough games, so I don’t think anyone’s performed well enough,” Belichick said when asked for an assessment of Jones’ performance. “We all need to do a better job.”
Zappe also has struggled, completing just 48.7% of his passes and averaging 4.1 yards per attempt. He threw interceptions in each of his last two outings. Asked what the second-year pro needs to do to earn a start over Jones, Belichick pointed to the importance of taking advantage of one’s opportunities.
“Every player, whatever opportunities they have, need to do the best with them that they can,” the coach said. “Practice, games, even in meetings and other preparation opportunities. That’s what a player can do: be prepared and do the best he can.
“Each guy will have an opportunity to do that somewhere along the line, over the course of a long season. A lot of times, it’s multiple times in a day. Sometimes, for some players, the opportunities are a little bit different. But when those opportunities come, that’s what those players need to do. That’s what they’ve been told. They know and understand that, and I think they’re doing the best they can. So we’ll see how it goes.”
The Patriots re-signed veteran third-stringer Will Grier to the practice squad Tuesday after releasing him ahead of the Giants game. Grier saw an uptick in first-team reps during the Patriots’ bye week as the team worked in some of its reserves.
Belichick wouldn’t say whether the 28-year-old, who hasn’t seen regular-season game action since his rookie year in 2019, will be in the mix this week.
“If (a player is) on the practice squad, they’re eligible and preparing and should be ready to play — and potentially are ready to play,” he said. “That includes everybody.”
The Patriots also have rookie Malik Cunningham on the practice squad, but he’s primarily worked as a wide receiver, with occasional scout-team reps at QB.
New England is scheduled to practice Wednesday, Thursday and Friday this week before hosting the 4-7 Chargers.
“We’ll see how it goes,” Belichick said. “I’m not prepared to make any announcement, so I’m not going to do that.”
