<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/patriots-news-bill-belichick-responds-malik-cunningham-jalen-hurts');   ga('set', 'title', 'Bill Belichick’s hilarious response to wild Malik Cunningham-Jalen Hurts comparison ahead of Patriots-Eagles matchup');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Patriots-news-Bill-Belichick_s-hilarious-response-about-wild-Malik-Cunningham-Jalen-Hurts-comparison-ahead-of-Eagles-matchup.jpg"></figure><h1>Bill Belichick’s hilarious response to wild Malik Cunningham-Jalen Hurts comparison ahead of Patriots-Eagles matchup</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-09-06T09:44:34-07:00">September 6th, 9:44am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-09-06T09:44:34-07:00">September 6th, 9:44am</time><address><a>Conor Roche</a>Conor Roche is a sports journalist that has covered Boston sports for a few years and has worked on the Patriots beat since the 2022 season.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>When the New England Patriots <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/patriots-news-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-big-decisions-new-england-future-shocking-releases" rel="noopener">brought Malik Cunningham back</a> and placed him on the practice squad following cutdown day, many assumed that he would be used to mimic one of the many mobile quarterbacks the team has on their schedule this season.</p><p>So, with the Patriots taking on the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1, the Patriots could use Cunningham in a practice in a similar way the Eagles use Jalen Hurts, right?</p><p>Well, that’s not exactly the case, at least in Bill Belichick’s eyes.</p><h2><b>Patriots: Bill Belichick reacts to Jalen Hurts-Malik Cunningham comparison</b></h2><p>During Wednesday’s press conference, the Patriots coach was asked if it’s helpful to have Cunningham available for the scout team to help mimic Hurts and get the team prepared. Belichick shot down any comparisons between the undrafted rookie and the star quarterback.</p><p>“Yeah, no, I mean, Malik’s got some good skills. I mean, I think it’d be a stretch to compare Malik Cunningham to Jalen Hurts now,” Belichick said. “I mean, you’re talking about a guy who’s second in MVP voting last year, or whatever he was. I don’t know.”</p><p>Belichick is correct that Hurts finished second in MVP voting last season, leading the Eagles to 14 wins in 15 starts as he threw for 3,701 yards and rushed for 760 yards while scoring 35 total touchdowns.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“But you’re talking about arguably the best player in the league or one of the top two or three best players in the league.”</p><p>— Bill Belichick on Jalen Hurts <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Eagles?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Eagles</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FlyEaglesFly?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FlyEaglesFly</a> <a href="https://t.co/Xg3gij3oaO">pic.twitter.com/Xg3gij3oaO</a></p><p>— JAKIB Sports (@JAKIBSports) <a href="https://twitter.com/JAKIBSports/status/1699445776986898808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The Patriots coach <a href="https://twitter.com/JAKIBSports/status/1699445776986898808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1699445776986898808%7Ctwgr%5Ed89d437e3fe8183df5ea182528f198cafa606b35%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwp.clutchpoints.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D2404502action%3Dedit" rel="noopener">continued to dismiss the comparison</a>, even though the question wasn’t really comparing Cunningham to Hurts.</p><p>“So yeah, athletically there are some similarities, but you’re talking about arguably the best player in the league — or one of the top two or three best players in the league. Nobody has anybody that can be him,” Belichick said. “And if they do, that guy’s probably not playing on scout team for that team anyway. So, yeah, I mean, it is what it is. We go through that every week. Every team’s got a few good players and some great players, and it’s hard to replicate those players. And if you have one, your guy’s probably not on the scout team doing it for that guy anyway.</p><p>“So, you know, you do the best you can but yeah, we’ll have somebody to try to simulate the best we can what Hurts does. But we don’t have anybody like Hurts, and probably neither does anybody else.”</p><p>Of course, Belichick is correct in that Cunningham doesn’t stack up to Hurts as a player. But no one really is under the illusion that they’re close in talent, either. The comparison between the two players really starts and ends with their mobile ability as Cunningham rushed for 50 touchdowns over his four seasons as a starting quarterback at Louisville.</p><h2><b>Patriots-Eagles Week 1 clash</b></h2><p>The Patriots can also draw some stuff from other experiences they’ve had against mobile quarterbacks to prepare for Sunday’s game. They haven’t done too well against those kinds of quarterbacks in recent seasons though, notably struggling against Josh Allen whenever they’ve faced the Buffalo Bills. For reference, Allen’s scored 18 touchdowns in his six games against the Patriots, leading the Bills to decisive wins in five of those games.</p><p>Maybe Cunningham’s presence on the roster and giving the team a look in practice they haven’t seen since Cam Newton was on the team three years ago can help change things.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Bill Belichick’s hilarious response to wild Malik Cunningham-Jalen Hurts comparison ahead of Patriots-Eagles matchup

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/patriots-news-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-big-decisions-new-england-future-shocking-releases');   ga('set', 'title', 'Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham make big decisions on New England future after shocking releases');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/patriots-news-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-make-big-decisions-on-new-england-future-after-shocking-releases.jpg"></figure><h1>Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham make big decisions on New England future after shocking releases</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-08-30T10:45:31-07:00">August 30th, 10:45am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-08-30T17:31:58-07:00">August 30th, 5:31pm</time><address><a>Luke Norris</a>Luke Norris began his sportswriting career in 2013 and joined ClutchPoints in 2023. A native of Central Illinois, Luke possesses extensive knowledge of several sports, which has allowed him to cover the NFL, NBA, the PGA Tour/LIV Golf, MLB, boxing, NASCAR, and even professional wrestling over the years.Luke is an avid golfer who finds inspiration in the way sports can bring people together and provide a distraction from the real world. He aims to provide a little entertainment or an escape in every article he writes, even if only for a few minutes.You can find Luke’s complete body of work on his personal site, The Luke Norris Experience, and you can follow him on Twitter at @THElukenorris.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>On Tuesday, the New England Patriots <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/patriots-quarterback-plan-after-shocking-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-moves" rel="noopener">shockingly waived</a> quarterbacks Bailey Zappe and Malik Cunningham, leaving Bill Belichick with just one signal-caller on the roster, that, of course, being Mac Jones.</p><p>But come Wednesday, that was no longer the case as both <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/patriots-quarterback-plan-after-shocking-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-moves" rel="noopener">Zappe and Cunningham are back</a> with the Patriots, just in a different capacity. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Zappe cleared waivers early Wednesday and <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/1696928050808594492" rel="noopener">will return</a> to New England as a member of the practice squad.</p><p>Literally five minutes later, Schefter reported that Cunningham will do the same.</p><p>In Zappe’s case, his release came as quite a shock, even to several Patriots players, as he entered training camp as Jones’ top backup. Taken in the fourth round of last year’s draft with the 137th overall pick, the Texas native made two starts for New England a season ago after Jones went down with an injury.</p><p>And Zappe certainly performed well in those two starts, leading the Patriots to victories over the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns, completing 74.5% of his passes for 497 yards with three touchdowns against just one interception in those wins.</p><p>In four appearances overall, Bailey Zappe completed 70.7% of his passes for 781 yards with five TDs and three picks. Many believed he could actually challenge Jones for the starting spot this season. But Belichick had obviously seen enough after a rough preseason in which Zappe connected on just 58.8% of his throws and took six sacks.</p><p>As for Malik Cunningham, who went unselected during the 2023 NFL Draft, the Louisville product was never expected to genuinely compete for QB1 honors, and many believed he wouldn’t make the main roster anyway. Cunningham attempted just six passes in preseason action, completing three of them for just 19 yards.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham make big decisions on New England future after shocking releases

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/patriots-quarterback-plan-after-shocking-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-moves');   ga('set', 'title', 'Patriots’ quarterback plan after shocking Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham moves');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Patriots-news-New-England_s-quarterback-plan-after-shocking-Bailey-Zappe-Malik-Cunningham-moves.jpg"></figure><h1>Patriots’ quarterback plan after shocking Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham moves</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-08-30T10:01:46-07:00">August 30th, 10:01am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-08-30T10:06:14-07:00">August 30th, 10:06am</time><address><a>Ryan Bologna</a>Ryan Bologna is an author at ClutchPoints. He studied journalism and communication at UConn.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New England Patriots are reportedly <a href="https://twitter.com/DMRussini/status/1696871089652035774" rel="noopener">still planning</a> for their backup quarterback to be Bailey Zappe if he clears waivers and makes it to the practice squad, according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic.</p><p>If Bailey Zappe does not clear waivers, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/4-patriots-veteran-qb-targets-after-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-roster-moves" rel="noopener">Patriots</a> will work through a list of available quarterbacks to sign as their backup.</p><p>However, it has also been reported that the Patriots still prefer to <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeGiardi/status/1696915791487152265" rel="noopener">bring in a veteran</a> option to be the backup, according to Mike Giardi of the Boston Sports Journal.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/jackson-state-news-patriots-release-heartbreaking-news-on-isiah-bolden" rel="noopener">Patriots</a> surprised fans when they released both Zappe and Malik Cunningham, leaving them with no backup quarterbacks behind Mac Jones on their initial 53-man roster.</p><p>It would make sense for Zappe to be the team’s backup, as long as he is not claimed. It will be interesting to see if Malik Cunningham would be in play to be the backup if Zappe does get claimed.</p><p>Zappe played in some games last season. The Patriots are hoping that Mac Jones improves in 2023 with Bill O’Brien taking over as the team’s offensive coordinator.</p><p>Jones had a promising first year in the NFL in the 2021 season, but regressed and struggled at times in 2022. As a result, the Patriots missed the playoffs.</p><p>The Patriots are viewed by many as the weakest team in their division. The Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins have talented rosters and made the playoffs last year, while the New York Jets have a talented roster that added Aaron Rodgers at quarterback.</p><p>The Patriots and Jones are hoping to surprise people this season. The roster is not fully known yet, as we do not know who the backup quarterback will be, but it seems that we know the Patriots’ plans for the position.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Patriots’ quarterback plan after shocking Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham moves

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/4-patriots-veteran-qb-targets-after-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-roster-moves');   ga('set', 'title', '4 Patriots veteran QB targets after Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham roster moves');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Thumbs-5-4.jpeg"></figure><h1>4 Patriots veteran QB targets after Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham roster moves</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-08-30T06:23:54-07:00">August 30th, 6:23am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-08-30T06:23:54-07:00">August 30th, 6:23am</time><address><a>Conor Roche</a>Conor Roche is a sports journalist that has covered Boston sports for a few years and has worked on the Patriots beat since the 2022 season.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New England Patriots had <a href="https://www.thescore.com/nfl/news/2701971" rel="noopener">another stunning cutdown day</a> on Tuesday.</p><p>The team opted to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/patriots-news-malik-cunningham-bailey-zappe-roster-cuts" rel="noopener">release Bailey Zappe and Malik Cunningham</a>, leaving Mac Jones as the lone player in the quarterback room.</p><p>Obviously, the team will need to add someone <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/1-player-patriots-claim-waiver-wire-roster-cuts" rel="noopener">to back up Jones</a> in the coming days. But this actually isn’t new to them, they released Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer on cutdown day in 2021 before bringing back Hoyer to backup Jones.</p><p>Anyway, there’s already been loads of speculation on what the team will do at backup quarter, from signing a journeyman to jokes about Tom Brady making his return.</p><p>So, let’s take a look at the four best options for the Patriots following Tuesday’s surprise.</p><h2><b>Colt McCoy</b></h2><p>The 14-year NFL vet is the clear top option to be the Patriots’ backup quarterback.</p><p>McCoy was somewhat surprisingly released by the Arizona Cardinals on Monday, leading some to speculate that they might be in full teardown mode. You might think it’s crazy for people to think that way about a soon-to-be 37-year-old journeyman quarterback, McCoy has been dependable as a backup option over his career.</p><p>McCoy went 3-3 over his six starts as a backup with the Cardinals, throwing for 1,520 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions with an 87.2 passer while appearing in parts of 12 games in the last two seasons. That’s the kind of baseline play you’d like to see from backup quarterback.</p><p>Prior to joining the Cardinals, McCoy played at an OK level with the Giants, too. He went 1-1 in the two games he started with them during the 2020 season, throwing for 375 yards, one touchdown and one interception that season. He also put up an 89.6 passer rating as he appeared in 12 games (seven starts) over five seasons in Washington.</p><p>If the Patriots need more of a veteran presence at quarterback, McCoy is certainly the answer.</p><h2><b>Carson Wentz</b></h2><p>Wentz might not be the most popular option among NFL fans and is probably not starter-worthy at this point. But it’s hard to argue that he shouldn’t be on an NFL roster.</p><p>In his last two stops, Wentz could at least play at an OK level at times. He threw for 5,318 yards with 38 touchdowns and 16 interceptions to go along with an 89.6 passer rating plus an 11-13 record as a starter over the last two seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and Washington Commanders. He’s also added a bit of a rushing element in the past, posting 215 rushing yards and a touchdown with the Colts in 2021.</p><p>Obviously, those numbers are a long way from where he was at with the Philadelphia Eagles at the start of his career. He was arguably the MVP frontrunner until he got hurt in 2017. But the Patriots aren’t asking their backup to be an MVP, just give them OK quarterback play.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">On 4th and 1… Wentz's third TD pass of the half! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForTheShoe?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ForTheShoe</a></p><p>📺: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TBvsIND?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TBvsIND</a> on FOX<br>📱: NFL app <a href="https://t.co/wKOjqsE4s9">pic.twitter.com/wKOjqsE4s9</a></p><p>— NFL (@NFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1465042623769444355?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2021</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Wentz is capable of doing that. And it’d be also funny to try and see him add some Patriots paraphernalia to the mix in his next Instagram workout post.</p><h2><b>David Blough</b></h2><p>The 28-year-old is 0-7 in the games he’s started over his four-year career, but hear me out: he wasn’t bad last season.</p><p>Blough was the third option the Cardinals turned to after Kyler Murray suffered a torn ACL last season, getting the nod after McCoy suffered a season-ending injury and Trace McSorley was benched.</p><p>Blough was dealt a pretty tough hand playing for a beaten-up and not-so-talented Cardinals squad. He put up a solid effort in the Week 17 loss against the Atlanta Falcons, throwing for 222 yards and a touchdown in a 20-19 loss. He had a couple of mistakes against the San Francisco 49ers a week later, throwing two interceptions but completed 14-of-18 passes for 180 yards and a touchdown plus an 87.3 passer rating as his team was clearly overmatched.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">wow David Blough ‼️</p><p>📺: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DENvsAZ?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DENvsAZ</a> on <a href="https://twitter.com/nflnetwork?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NFLNetwork</a><br>📱: Stream on NFL+ <a href="https://t.co/bBFpXewtKp">https://t.co/bBFpXewtKp</a> <a href="https://t.co/4jESkudxB4">pic.twitter.com/4jESkudxB4</a></p><p>— NFL (@NFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1690227307129294848?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 12, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The Cardinals also released Blough on Tuesday, but he can be an OK option as a backup quarterback.</p><h2><b>Bailey Zappe</b></h2><p>Who says you can’t reunite <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/patriots-news-matthew-slater-reacts-to-bailey-zappe-roster-cut" rel="noopener">with a released player</a>?</p><p>The Patriots have reportedly shown interest in bringing back the guy who was their primary backup for most of last season. Reasonably so, he went 2-0 as a starter as he threw for five touchdowns and 781 years over four games.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">DeVante Parker OH MY 😮</p><p>📺: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CHIvsNE?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CHIvsNE</a> on ESPN<br>📱: Stream on NFL+ <a href="https://t.co/2HQeNdaFPc">https://t.co/2HQeNdaFPc</a> <a href="https://t.co/bHm7xgcf6w">pic.twitter.com/bHm7xgcf6w</a></p><p>— NFL (@NFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1584716371278979072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 25, 2022</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Obviously, Zappe’s preseason wasn’t good. And maybe last season was a one-hit wonder. But we know he can at least help you win a game or two as a backup. You shouldn’t be expecting to find the next franchise quarterback here. Just someone who can step in and win you a game or two if something ever happens to your starting quarterback.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

4 Patriots veteran QB targets after Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham roster moves

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/patriots-rumors-colt-mccoy-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-roster-cuts');   ga('set', 'title', 'RUMOR: Patriots eyeing this veteran QB after Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham roster cuts');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/nfl-rumors-patriots-eyeing-this-veteran-qb-after-bailey-zappe-malik-cunningham-roster-cuts.jpeg"></figure><h1>RUMOR: Patriots eyeing this veteran QB after Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham roster cuts</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-08-29T14:46:00-07:00">August 29th, 2:46pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-08-29T14:46:00-07:00">August 29th, 2:46pm</time><address><a>Andrew Meyers</a>Andrew Meyers is an avid sports fan with a fondness for Philadelphia teams that rarely love him back. He has two degrees from Quinnipiac University, including a master's in sports journalism. Outside of ClutchPoints, Meyers does play-by-play broadcasting for various colleges in the northeast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New England Patriots have been active in the quarterback market on Tuesday and reportedly have their eyes on a new veteran backup for Mac Jones.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/patriots-make-stunning-bailey-zappe-roster-decision" rel="noopener">The Patriots released</a> both Bailey Zappe and Malik Cunningham, leaving Jones as the only quarterback on the active roster. Though New England plans on bringing Zappe back as a <a href="https://twitter.com/albertbreer/status/1696624033163247846?s=12&amp;t=bm8qRt18zuhlXFzV7rKRAQ" rel="noopener">practice squad player</a> should he clear waivers, the Patriots also are looking into singing Colt McCoy.</p><p>McCoy was recently released by the Arizona Cardinals, whom he started six games for over the last two seasons. He was expected to be Arizona’s Week 1 starter as Kyler Murray continues to recover from a torn ACL but the Cardinals decided to go in a different direction and cut the 13-year veteran.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/patriots-news-new-england-makes-shocking-malik-cunningham-decision-after-bailey-zappe-release" rel="noopener">The Patriots cutting both Zappe and Cunningham</a> came as a surprise, but bringing one of them back would not be. Though Zappe started and won two games for the Patriots last season, he did not do enough to earn the backup job, at least to start the season.</p><p>If New England decides to bring back Zappe and sign Colt McCoy, it will be interesting to see who they decide to dress alongside Jones on gameday. The Patriots have had a ton of success with backup quarterbacks under Bill Belichick so it would be foolish to think they couldn’t replicate it if Mac Jones were to miss time again in 2023.</p><p>Bailey Zappe very well could end up being the No. 2 for the Patriots for much of the season. New England may want to get a look at a veteran though and bring in some experience to their QB room.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2023 SEASON STATS
PASSING YDS	PASSING TDS	INTERCEPTIONS	POSITION RANK
0	0	0	-

2023 SEASON STATS
PASSING YDS	PASSING TDS	INTERCEPTIONS	POSITION RANK
0	0	0	-

Malik Cunningham

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4 Patriots veteran QB targets after Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham roster moves

RUMOR: Patriots eyeing this veteran QB after Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham roster cuts

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