Jerod Mayo Reiterates Patriots’ Top Choice For Starting QB

FOXBORO, Mass. -- The Patriots plan on starting Jacoby Brissett in their Week 1 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 8.

It couldn't be any more clear.

Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo gave his pre-training camp address Tuesday and reiterated something he's shared multiple times since Brissett was signed back in March. New England plans on giving the 31-year-old every opportunity to start, and in turn, would prefer if rookie Drake Maye sat throughout the early portion of the regular season.

"I mean, coming out of the spring I don't think there's any doubt that Jacoby (Brissett) is the starting quarterback at this point in time," Mayo said. "We can look at these other quarterbacks on the roster, because at the same time, it's about competition. When we get out on the field this summer, with the pads on, we'll see how it all plays out.

"I just think it's clear that Jacoby is the most pro-ready guy we have. He's played a lot of football."

New England obviously will make the switch to Maye at some point in 2024. You don't draft someone with the No. 3 pick and glue him to the bench for 12 months. But it's clear the Patriots are following a similar approach to the one in Green Bay, where executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf learned under his father, Ron.

"You've seen that work in the past," Mayo said. "The Green Bay quarterback, where they had a lot of time where they were able to sit back. There have also been situations where a guy comes in right now and balls out. We'll see what happens when we get out here on the field."

Mayo did leave the door open for things to change, but if all goes according to plan, the Patriots will be led onto the field by No. 14 when they travel out to Ohio.