Bill Belichick does not guarantee starting QB job for Mac Jones

BOSTON -- When Mac Jones arrives for OTAs next month in Foxboro, he'll be doing so as the presumed starting quarterback of the New England Patriots.

The word "presumed" must remain there for the time being, though, as head coach Bill Belichick indicated that nobody has a guaranteed job on the entire roster.

"Yeah, well everybody will get a chance to play. We'll play our best players," Belichick said when asked if it's a competition between Jones and Bailey Zappe at quarterback. "Everybody will get a chance to play. Every position. Everybody will get a chance to play. Everybody that's on our roster, if they earn the opportunity to play based on what they do in practice and all of that, then they will get an opportunity to play. Certainly veteran players that have been on the team before, if they're still on the team, they'll all get an opportunity to play."

The quarterback position obviously carries with it a different level of significance and attention, and Belichick has confirmed in the past that his starting quarterback would not be losing his job. You may remember an awkward exchange with a reporter when Belichick was asked why Tom Brady was guaranteed to have his job waiting for him upon his return from a four-game suspension in 2016. That wasn't the only time that Belichick completely dismissed the potential for anyone other than Brady to be his starting quarterback, and even Cam Newton got that level of job protection amid a dismal season in 2020. 

So while the answer is largely status quo in terms of a Belichick press conference answer, it can't be totally ignored after the Mac Jones-Bailey Zappe saga from last season.

As for Jones, Belichick said he'd keep private the things he and the coaching staff wanted the QB to work on this offseason. The coach was asked directly, though, how he felt about Jones' on-field outbursts at the coaching staff last season.

"Yeah, we're looking ahead to 2023 here. I'm not gonna go back and rehash ''22," Belichick said. "Done with that."

In a follow-up, Belichick was asked if he sees that on-field temperament as an area where Jones can or should improve.

"I think we all can improve. All of us," Belichick said. "Start with me and every other player and coach that's here. So that's for all of us."