Mac Jones says he hasn't been told if he's Patriots' starting quarterback

FOXBORO -- The Patriots will practice for the only time of their bye week on Wednesday. As of late Tuesday, Mac Jones still didn't know if he'd be taking reps as the team's No.1 quarterback.

Jones' current status is up in the air after he was benched late in New England's 10-6 loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Germany on Sunday. He took a seat on the bench after he threw a back-breaking interception in the red zone, underthrowing a wide open Mike Gesicki in the end zone for the potential go-ahead touchown.

When the Patriots had one final chance at a comeback, Bill Belichick went with a cold Bailey Zappe instead of Jones. It was the third time this season that Jones has been benched.

But those previous two benchings came in blowout losses. This was much different, with the starting quarterback getting yanked while the team still had a chance to win. 

That would seemingly indicate that the Patriots will have a different starting quarterback when they return to action in Week 12. But the team has kept everyone guessing, including Jones.

During a radio interview with WEEI's Jones and Mego with Arcand on Tuesday, Jones was asked if he's been told whether or not he'll be the team's starting quarterback when the Patriots face the New York Giants in New Jersey.

"No, we haven't talked about that," Jones said. "Really just, today we watched the game film and kind of talked about the plans for the bye week,. We have practice [Wednesday] so, just see how it goes there and the bye week is a great time to work on things that you can do better. So that's what I'm going to do."

Asked when he expected to hear if he is the team's starter, Jones sidestepped the inquiry.

"I'm really not focusing on that and really just focusing on things I can control and focused on that. I've always done that," he said. "I really need to improve, obviously, and that's what I'm going to focus on."

WEEI gets to interview New England's starting quarterback every week, which could be our first indication that Jones will keep his job out of the bye week. Or, it could be the Patriots playing games with the Giants, going about business as usual before they make the switch official.

We'll get a better idea on the team's plan at quarterback based on who gets first-team reps in Wednesday's practice. Or, the Patriots will continue to play mind games and keep everyone outside of the building guessing until next week.