The Patriots’ decision to cut quarterback Bailey Zappe today was as surprising inside the locker room as it was to everyone else.
That’s the word from longtime Patriots special teams captain Matthew Slater, who said he didn’t see Zappe’s departure coming.
“Certainly, something like that is, I guess, surprising to a lot of us,” Slater said, via Zack Cox of NESN. “I love Bailey. He knows how I feel about him. He’s one of my favorite kids all-time.”
It’s still possible that Zappe could be back on the Patriots’ practice squad, but that would require him to pass through waivers, and Zappe played well enough as a rookie last season that there’s a good chance one of the 31 other NFL teams will decide to claim him.
Regardless, after an offseason in which Bill Belichick refused to even name Mac Jones the starter over Zappe, Zappe failed to make the Patriots’ 53-player roster. That’s a surprise to everyone.
