Who the Patriots starting quarterback will be was in the spotlight after Thursday's horrendous loss, and Jerod Mayo continued to contradict himself.
New England went to Drake Maye in the closing minutes of its 24-3 loss at Metlife Stadium. The offense wasn't dramatically better with the rookie under center, and it showed why Jacoby Brissett should remain the starter. However, Mayo kept the door open for a possible change.
"I don't know," Mayo told reporters, per WBZ. "Look, we talk about every single week you're competing for a job. So, we'll get together as a coaching staff and see where it goes."
The Patriots seemingly got together overnight for Mayo to make a blunt statement Friday morning.
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"Jacoby is our quarterback until I say he's not the quarterback," Mayo told reporters, per the Patriots. "I thought last (Thursday) night he showed a lot of toughness, a lot of grit. Protection breakdowns, tried to what we asked him to do. But I would say as a team, as a coaching staff, we just got to be better."
The head coach added that "everything was under evaluation" and reiterated that Brissett was the starter until he said otherwise. It still was a quick change in tone from Mayo. And while it's the right decision, it felt weird to leave a hanging thread for Mate as the starter. It felt reminiscent of the beginning of the season when Mayo went to unnecessary lengths to tease who the Week 1 starter would be.
Luckily for the Patriots head coach, he and his staff will get extended time to fix mistakes -- if they are amendable -- and prepare for the San Francisco 49ers in Week 4.
Featured image via Robert Deutsch/Imagn Images
