Bill Belichick saved some major praise for Bailey Zappe in what could be one of his last news conferences as Patriots head coach.

Belichick, who was scheduled for an in-person presser but audibled to video conference because he was feeling sick, was asked about what kind of example Zappe set for other players for the competitive level and resilience he has shown since being cut in August and then starting the final six weeks of the season at quarterback.

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“Really good. In August or September, whenever it was during the final cuts and that kind of thing, I talked to Bailey and I thought he had a great attitude and outlook on the situation,” Belichick said. “What do I need to do better? How can I do it? How can I improve? And, he’s worked very hard to address those, and I think that’s shown up in his play and his performance, not just recently, but going all the way back to, you know, day-by-day through September, October, you know, all those days. You just take it one day at a time, and I think he really tried to embrace that. It’s a big credit to him, his mental toughness, his resiliency and his attitude toward competing.”

Mac Jones was benched on four separate occasions while going 2-9 as a starter before Zappe permanently passed him on the depth chart in Week 13. Zappe has put together a 2-3 record in five starts.

The second-year pro has reflected on that moment multiple times over the second half of the season, calling it “the worst thing I’ve ever had happen to me in my football career.” He reached out to Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner at the time for advice. Warner revealed last month during the Patriots-Broncos Christmas Eve night broadcast that Zappe had asked him, “Did you ever have those times where you wondered if you belonged in the league?”

Zappe’s struggles in the offseason workout program, training camp and preseason led him to get cut. He’s put together a better winning percentage than Jones but has seen continued struggles turning the ball over with seven interceptions and two fumbles on the season. He had three interceptions in the first half of Sunday’s loss to the Bills.

Zappe’s QBR of 33.5 is actually slightly worse than Jones’ 36.6 mark. Neither Zappe nor Jones looks like the quarterback of the future for the Patriots.