Mac Jones on the outside looking in for Week 13 vs. Chargers

Whether you feel it's Mac's fault or not, the third-year quarterback doesn't look like he's in the cards this week. PIC: Steve Luciano/AP

"To deal with adversity at that position, it's not an individualized journey. It's easy for anybody to sit here and say that, 'well, Mac hasn't dealt with adversity well'. Well, to deal with adversity at the quarterback spot is not a solo journey. It's just not. It's the most dependent position in all of professional sports. And when you're dealing with that adversity, you have to have people around you that can, in some way, at least on a Sunday for at least 3.5 hours, help you perform through that adversity. And that hasn't been the case in New England and no one's going to debate me on that."

That's a quote from Dan Orlovsky on WEEI's Jones & Mego today. And in many ways, he's correct.

Mac Jones had a pivotal year this season. He had a new offensive coordinator, a couple of upgraded (or so we thought) offensive weapons. He finally had a new play caller, and to sweeten the pot, it was his old offensive coordinator in college. Things were looking good.

And then they weren't.

Many have weighed in on why it's simply not working. Doug Kyed from the Boston Herald hypothesized that “Jones is lacking confidence in himself, his teammates and the scheme...[[he]] doesn’t trust his arm, the blocking or coverage reads, so he’s spiraling.“ That's pretty much how many New England fans feel at the moment - Mac looks totally uncomfortable, and the reasons are countless why.

As the Pats gear up for Week 13 against the Chargers, it appears Mac Jones has taken a back seat and is not in line to start. If that's truly the case and Bill Belichick isn't taking us on one of his classic gaslighting crusades once more, the QB room is down to Bailey Zappe, Malik Cunningham, and potentially even Will Grier, who was just re-signed after being on-and-off the Pats roster for a good chunk of the year.

Bailey Zappe, who hasn't exactly overwhelmed in his appearances this year, will likely get the crack against the Chargers on Sunday. “He looked good," said Juju Smith-Schuster at practice today. "[[He was]] making throws, moving the chains.”

Even after years of proving he'll do just the opposite, Bill Belichick still stands by his claims that he's "not in the business of naming starters every week." We all know that's a lie - he didn't hesitate to name Matt Cassel the starting quarterback when Tom Brady was hurt, he was blatant about his intentions to ride with Cam Newton in 2020, and was unwaveringly claiming "Mac Jones is our starter" throughout the past few years.

But somehow, even with the painstaking ambiguity, one thing seems to be crystal clear: Mac Jones is no longer the starter on this team.