Earlier this week, New England Patriots’ head coach Bill Belichick surprised many when he waived quarterbacks Bailey Zappe and undrafted rookie Malik Cunningham.
This briefly left starter Mac Jones as the only signal-caller on the roster, but Belichick wound up re-signing both to the practice squad. The QB2 competition further opened up when Belichick claimed 2022 third-round pick Matt Corral off waivers from the Carolina Panthers.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, it appears as though the backup QB job is between Zappe and Corral. Rapoport noted that Zappe, who made two starts for the Pats last season, likely has “the leg up” on the competition given his knowledge of the team’s playbook.
Though the 2022 NFL Draft was considered weak for quarterbacks (Kenny Pickett of the Pittsburgh Steelers was the only QB to go in round one), Corral was widely regarded as one of the best prospects at the position.
The Carolina Panthers drafted Corral 94th overall last season, but the Ole Miss product didn’t see a single snap on offense in his rookie year. The Panthers used three different starters in Baker Mayfield, P.J. Walker and Sam Darnold.
