Will Mac Jones play for Patriots in preseason opener? Bill Belichick won't say

BOSTON -- With two of the Patriots' three preseason games being scheduled on the road, New England fans have just one opportunity to lay their peepers on the local team in game action before the start of the season. Those fans surely are eager to catch at least a small glimpse of what the offense might look like under new offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien, with starting quarterback Mac Jones driving the bus.

Whether or not those fans will get to see that happen on Thursday night against Houston remains TBD.

"Yeah, I don't know," Bill Belichick said Tuesday when asked if Jones will start at quarterback on Thursday night.

As for the divvying up of snaps at QB, Belichick didn't offer a specific plan but did lay out a general idea of what to expect.

"Yeah, we're still working on that. But the players who are least experienced will get the most playing time, I can tell you that," he said.

On the opposite end of the depth chart, Belichick was asked if Malik Cunningham might get some snaps at quarterback. The college quarterback had been working primarily as a wide receiver through the spring and summer, but he has begun to get a little bit of work in at quarterback, behind backup Bailey Zappe and third-stringer Trace McSorley.

As to whether Cunningham might play at QB on Thursday? Belichick was once again noncommittal.

"We'll see. Yeah, we'll see," Belichick said. "We'll see how it looks in practice, maybe we'll use it some in the game. I don't know."

Tune in to Thursday night's Patriots-Texans preseason game on WBZ-TV -- your official station of the New England Patriots! Pregame coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. with Patriots GameDay, kickoff is set for 7 p.m., and stay tuned for Patriots 5th Quarter after the game. You can also catch Devin and Jason McCourty's special "Twincast" of the game streaming on WBZ.com!