Many young talents have been playing in the NFL this season and Bailey Zappe is one of them. Born in April 1999, the quarterback has shown several times that he has got the skills. However, he and his team are having quite an unfavorable time this NFL season. The New England Patriots have been struggling severely and they lost yet another game.
With Tom Brady, the Patriots have won 6 Super Bowls. However, they have been having a bad time ever since the NFL legend left them. Recently, the Patriots had a game against the Indianapolis Colts and lost by 6-10. During the game, the team benched their QB Mac Jones, and got Bailey Zappe.
The Patriots have benched Mac Jones and QB Bailey Zappe is now in the game with 1:46 to play and the Pats down 4. pic.twitter.com/FGuETJOTTR
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 12, 2023
The quarterback entered the match down 4 points without any remaining timeout. When there were 36 seconds left, Bailey Zappe faked a spike but Colts safety Rodney Thomas II intercepted him. With this, the Patriots lost the game, but Zappe still has a lot of potential in him.
A look at Bailey Zappe’s NFL contract
Bailey Zappe has earned huge recognition ever since he made his NFL debut. The 24-year-old athlete has been impressive in many games. With his gameplay, the quarterback has earned many fans who want to be like him. However, along with fame, the star player is getting a good amount of money as well.
Zappe signed his rookie contract with the New England Patriots last year. It was a 4-year contract that was worth $4.3 million. The deal came with a signing bonus of $647,072 and $647,072 guaranteed. It also offered the 215 lb player an average yearly salary of $1,076,768. However, after considering his below-average performance, the Patriots decided to cut the QB in August this year.
After that, Bailey Zappe once again signed a deal with the Patriots as a practice squad member on August 30 this year. In September, the team included him in their 53-man roster while releasing their backup QB Matt Coral. As per reports, the team signed him as their emergency third quarterback.
The current contract of the star player is worth only $1.765 million. It is a 2-year contract that offers the QB an average yearly salary of $882,500. Throughout his 2-year NFL career, Zappe has earned $2.2 million.
It’s worth noting that if Bailey Zappe stays with the team till 2024, his career earnings will go to $3.2 million. With all his earnings, the star player presently holds a net worth of $1.5 million. Now, it’ll be interesting to see whether the Patriots decide to sign another contract with the QB or not.
A walk through the football career of Bailey Zappe
Bailey Zappe is having a difficult time in the NFL despite possessing exceptional skills. The Texas-born star has been passionate about football since he was a kid. He began playing the sport at Victoria East High School. Zappe impressed everyone as he got 37 touchdowns for 3,770 passing yards in his senior year. He also recorded 15 touchdowns for 633 rushing yards.
After that, the QB joined Houston Christian University. As a freshman, Bailey Zappe recorded 5 TDs and 10 interceptions for 1,548 passing yards. In his sophomore year, the star player completed 357 out of his 560 passing attempts. He impressed everyone with his 35 TDs and 15 interceptions for 3,811 passing yards.
As a junior, Zappe got 15 touchdowns and 1 interception for 1,833 passing yards. After that, the quarterback transferred to Western Kentucky University. The 2021 season proved to be the best for him as he recorded 56 TDs for 5,545 passing yards. His exceptional performance made him win the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award as well in 2021.
After completing his college career, Bailey Zappe entered the NFL in 2022. He was the Patriots’ 137th pick in the 4th round of the NFL draft last year. The 6-foot-1 QB made his debut in the league against the Green Bay Packers. Throughout his NFL career of 2 years, Zappe has completed 75 out of his 117 passing attempts. He has recorded only 5 TDs and 4 interceptions for 885 yards.
Considering the talent Bailey Zappe holds, his performance in the NFL is not up to the mark. For now, the star player needs to prove his worth if he wants to have a successful career in the league.