QB Bailey Zappe (1.1.25)
So, have you been told, Bailey, what your role will be here this Saturday?
“No, sir, I have not been told whether who’s starting, who the two is, who the three is. None of that. I’m sure (Kevin) Stefanski’s still deciding who that is and he’ll tell us whenever obviously he sees fit.”
I know you said this was an offense that you said you had a little bit from the early with coming in, but can you quantify and describe how much more comfortable you are from when you came in week eight to now?
“Yeah, I mean, obviously I’m more comfortable. There are some things that (Ken) Dorsey obviously brought in whenever he came in here that I didn’t have whenever I was with AVP (Alex Van Pelt). Some different verbiage stuff that I had to learn over the last few weeks, but pretty much got all that down. There’s not really anything that I can think of that I don’t know in this offense really. But Dorsey and Ash (Ashton Grant) have done a great job of staying with me after practices, after meetings and just kind of getting extra work for me to kind of get that stuff down pat.”
Kevin told us that you would be splitting some time with Dorian in some way, shape or form. We don’t know who’s going to start. So how do you feel about knowing that you’re going into this game with an opportunity to get some?
“Yeah, obviously it’s a great opportunity. Personally, I kind of look at it like I’m on a one-year deal here. I have no idea what the future holds for me and it’s a great opportunity for me to go out there, play some football and get some film on it for people to watch. Hopefully it’s a good film, but I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Is there any effect of going into a game not knowing what your role is going to be and trying to prepare for a game where you don’t really know if you’re going to play, or how much you’re going to play if you’re going to start the game?
“I mean, I don’t know if he’s going to get mad, but I was in New England for two years and Bill (Belichick) kept everything secret. So, sometimes I wouldn’t find out until like Thursday night, Friday, like, ‘Hey, just letting you know, you’re playing Sunday.’ So, I’m used to it. I just prepare like I usually prepare, whether I’m the three or the one. And that’s what he taught me whenever I was there so I’m going to keep doing that.”
What do you feel like you’ve been able to do in practice in your time here that has maybe helped prepare you for the opportunities and things that you’ve been doing both on the practice fields and in the meeting rooms?
“Yeah, obviously taking the scout reps versus the number one defense. I think that’s a big thing going against Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, Denzel (Ward), M.J. (Martin Emerson Jr.), the safeties we have, the linebackers we got. I’m going against those guys every day on the scout side. So, obviously the coaches have liked what they’ve seen the last few weeks, so just excited for this opportunity.”
Has Kevin told you when he’s going to play you?
“No sir. Nope.”
How would you describe — you get eight starts in those two years in New England and then this year haven’t played yet. So how do you deal with that emotionally as a player trying to keep yourself ready and trying to get that next shot?
“Yeah, I mean, obviously you don’t want that to happen, but it’s part of the NFL. And when opportunities like this present themselves, you just got to go out there and take advantage of them. Those eight starts, there’s a lot of things I did good, a lot of things I did bad. So, really just learning from those mistakes that I made and applying that to this next opportunity that I have and just taking advantage of it.”
Since you mentioned Bill and since you’ve known Bill, what should those kids in Carolina expect?
“I mean, look, he’s going to win. I mean, he’s the greatest coach of all time. I think there’s no denying that. But besides when the cameras are on, he has a great personality, he has great humor. So, I think he’s going to fit in just fine. But those guys, whoever goes there, they’ve got to be ready to play some football. He’s all about ball. So, if you’re all about ball, that’s the place to be. That’s his recruiting pitch.”
What does that say for you, for the future. You mentioned you don’t know what comes next. What is that uncertainty like for you?
“I mean, it’s kind of nerve wracking because you don’t know where you’re going to be at. But I feel like some of the things that I’ve done in the games that I have played is good enough to continue my career further on. Obviously, I don’t know where that’s going to be at, whether it’s here, whether it’s wherever. I’m sure after this week I’ll get with my agent, we’ll go from there. Obviously, I like to be here. I like it here. I’ve made a lot of great relationships here. If that doesn’t happen, then obviously I wish everybody luck here. But I’m excited.”
I know Jerry (Jeudy) had a career high in targets and catches last week. You don’t know about David (Njoku) yet, but Ced (Cedric Tillman) is on IR. So, like, you don’t have your number two and number three receivers, how do you practice working with the top guy when that’s where everyone thinks you’re going to be looking basically?
“Yeah, I mean, obviously, Jerry’s (Jeudy) one of the best receivers in the league. There are certain things that defenses are going to try to do to stop him and I think Dorsey and Coach Stefanski are going to do a good job of kind of moving him and kind of just creating opportunities for him to get the ball. And obviously, we have guys like Elijah Moore and Blake Whiteheart and the rest of the guys. Those guys are going to step up, obviously, and Elijah’s done a great job this year, too. So, I’m excited for all those guys to get their opportunity as well, and hopefully I can get them the ball and they can run with it.”
Turnovers have been a huge problem for quarterbacks, the offense. How can you go in and maintain your aggressiveness and also just be smart with the football?
“Yeah, I mean, I think the biggest thing that I’ve learned over my three years is mentally, you can’t really go into a game thinking, ‘I don’t want to turn the ball over, I don’t want to turn the ball over,’ because the more you think about it, the more likely it’s going to happen. So, if it happens, it happens. You just got to continue to move on and just kind of learn from it and make sure it doesn’t happen again. And make sure one doesn’t turn into two and two turns into three. So, really just think touchdowns when you’re going in there, and hopefully that happens.”