Even though the 2023 NFL season is not over yet, it’s safe to say the New England Patriots‘ campaign has been, to put it lightly, completely disappointing. In fact, that explains why Bill Belichick is reportedly on the hot seat.
The team has seriously struggled at quarterback, with neither Mac Jones nor Bailey Zappe finding a way to get things going this year. To make things worse, the Patriots let Malik Cunningham go despite his promising performances in the preseason.
The rookie quarterback, who can also perform at wide receiver, was signed off the Patriots’ practice squad by the Baltimore Ravens, something that didn’t sit well with some people in Foxborough. Offensive tackle Trent Brown, for instance, has once again shown his frustration with the lack of opportunities given to Cunningham. On top of that, he said everyone on the locker room feels that way.
Trent Brown thinks Cunningham deserved more chances
“Absolutely,” Brown said when asked by AtoZ Sports’ Sophie Weller if he thought Cunningham deserved a chance this season. “Everybody on the team did. Everybody.”
Even though Cunningham showed signs of his talent before Week 1, he got only six snaps during the regular season. His lack of playing time took many by surprise, considering how poorly the team was doing at the position while he did well in the preseason games. Brown even took a subtle jab at Jones and Zappe, claiming none of their drives was as good as one of Cunningham in preseason.
“I mean, probably the most exciting drive we had in that stadium was against Houston in preseason games this season,” Brown said. “Like, my guy couldn’t even get a red jersey.”
Brown had already expressed his unhappiness with the way things went with Cunningham as soon as he got signed by the Ravens. “Go flourish where your talent is respected lil bradda,” he wrote on an Instagram story.
Patriots coaches reportedly wanted to play Cunningham after five weeks
While Brown made it clear how much he wanted to see Cunningham under center, it looks like some members of the Patriots’ coaching staff considered to give him more snaps after the brutal 0-34 loss to the Saints in Week 5.
“I will tell you this: I heard from coaches after the Saints game. So, two blowouts in a row, bad quarterback play. And I had coaches say to me, ‘We might as well try Malik at this point. What do we have to lose?’ And so, that may have been reflective of a greater portion of the locker room than maybe I was willing to give credit to at the time,” said Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston, via NESN.
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Either way, the Patriots continued to start Jones for a few weeks before Belichick ultimately benched him for Zappe. Cunningham now is developing behind Lamar Jackson, which Trent Brown sees as a great opportunity for his former teammate.
“It’s funny because I told him months ago if they ever called, if anybody, that’s the team where he should go,” Brown said about Baltimore. “… And that’s really good for him to actually get a real chance to play his real position.”
Cunningham thanked Belichick, Patriots
Even though he didn’t have much room on the roster, Cunningham showed no hard feelings against his former team. On the contrary, the rookie QB was grateful to Belichick and Robert Kraft for trusting in him despite going undrafted this year.
“I wanted to thank Mr. Kraft and Coach Belichick for giving me (an) opportunity to play with the Patriots. I learned a lot from them,” Cunningham said in a statement, via Adam Schefter of ESPN. “I wanted to be a coach one day, so I would take notes from Coach Belichick because he’s one of the greatest of all time. I had great teammates in New England and built relationships that will last a lifetime. But I just feel like this is a good opportunity for me, and I’m excited to be a Baltimore Raven.”
