by: garpu.ukPosted on:

Bailey Zappe said his friends and family stayed home for Patriots’ win over Steelers because tickets were too expensive

Patriots

“They all watched from home. I don’t want to pay for those tickets. I’m still on a rookie contract, you know?”

Bailey Zappe. AP Photo/Matt Freed

  • Report: Even after he was cut, Bailey Zappe knew he’d ‘eventually be the starter’ over Mac Jones

  • Former Patriots player Jack Jones cheers on Bailey Zappe vs. Steelers

Bailey Zappe grinned as he answered a question about how many of his friends and family made the trip to Pittsburgh to watch his fourth career NFL start against the Steelers at Acrisure Stadium.

“I had nobody,” Zappe said. “They all watched from home. I don’t want to pay for those tickets. I’m still on a rookie contract, you know? That’s a little expensive.”

Zappe threw three first-half touchdowns and led the Patriots to a 21-18 win on Thursday night. It was the first time a Patriots quarterback had thrown three touchdowns in a game since Mac Jones did it in the season opener against the Eagles.

The second-year quarterback is now 3-1 in his four career NFL starts. He said he drew confidence from playing with his teammates.

“It comes from those guys,” Zappe said. “They helped me out a lot. We deserve today. So, to be able to have this moment with these guys and have the moment that we had is awesome.”

Thursday was Zappe’s second start of the season. His other four appearances came after Jones’s benchings. Zappe, whose first start of the season was on Sunday, said having a short week helped his preparation.

“I think it was a lot different,” Zappe said. “I think I learned some things as far as preparation. There wasn’t a lot of physical reps. So, a lot of it was mental.

“A lot of it was just me sitting behind the computer screen and just watching plays and games, after games, after games,” Zappe added. “I feel like that’s something that I’m going to learn from and carry it over into the next few weeks and try to continue to grow as far as what I do during the week before games.”

Zappe had five career touchdown passes heading into the prior to Thursday, adding three more to his career total just in the first of the win. He ended up completing 19 of 28 passes for three touchdowns with an interception.

“It’s really hard to score touchdowns in the NFL,” Zappe said. “So, to be able to score touchdowns is – you’ve got to celebrate each one. It was kind of a weight off of our back once we scored and we just kind of went from there. It’s exciting. Glad we won, and we’ll move on and get ready for next week.

“But, for now, we’ll celebrate this one.”