The Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots are both teams that will likely be seeking new quarterbacks this offseason, but they both seem to be taking very different approaches to discussing their quarterback situations publically with one team directly expressing disappointment in their current quarterbacks and the other refusing to comment negatively on their players.
On Wednesday, New England Patriots director of player scouting Eliot Wolf acknowledged that the Patriots would explore all of their options at the quarterback position this offseason, but he declined to say anything publically about the future of Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe, indicating that they will handle everything “behind the scenes.”
“I’d say there’s a lot of options on the table,” Wolf said according to Pro Football Talk. “I’m glad you asked about Mac [Jones] and Bailey [Zappe] — we’re not going to be a program that’s talking about these guys in terms of through the media. We’re going to do what’s best for the team behind the scenes and the strategy of that is going to be myself, [head coach] Jerod Mayo, [director of player personnel] Matt Groh. And we’re going to do the right thing for the team.”
Meanwhile, the Atlanta Falcons were glad to speak publically about their disappointment at the quarterback position.
“Yeah, we’ve got to get it right, and that’s real clear. We haven’t shied away from that,” Falcons GM Terry Fontenot said according to Pro Football Talk. “We know that’s critical to get that position right, but it doesn’t stop there. We have to get the right quarterback in, and we have to improve this entire roster and get ready to roll this season.”
New head coach Raheem Morris went as far as to suggest that the Falcons might not have had to fire previous head coach Arthur Smith had the quarterbacks played better.
Raheem Morris on Atlanta being closer to contention than one might think:
“If we had better quarterback play I may not be standing here at the podium.” pic.twitter.com/dAZNTt7YTO
— Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) February 27, 2024
“If we had better quarterback play I may not be standing here at the podium,” Morris said on Tuesday, according to Atlanta Falcons beat writer Daniel Flick of Sports Illustrated.
Both teams are in need of new quarterbacks after disappointing showings from the previous starters, and both have the previous starter under contract for next season. However, the two sides are taking two very different approaches to a very similar situation.
