QB1? Patriots Won’t Hand Drake Maye Starting Job Right Away

FOXBORO, Mass. — The Patriots didn’t take Drake Maye with the No. 3 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft to have him sit around and watch. He was selected to be the guy in New England.

It might take a while for him to get there, though.

Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo won’t crown his new signal-caller just yet. Jacoby Brissett was brought back to New England for a reason, and the expectation should be that he enters the season as the starting quarterback, with Mayo’s though process stemming from someone we’re all familiar with.

“I think to go back to Bill (Belichick), I don’t think many rookies are ready to just jump in and play,” Mayo told reporters Thursday. “At the end of the day, our philosophy is the best players will play. Coming in as a rookie, hopefully he’s a sponge. A lot of good players in that locker room.

“Jacoby (Brissett) understands he’s a mentor. He’s very smart, has great leadership skills and hopefully Drake can learn something from him, as well. I would say we’re going to compete all spring, we’re going to compete during training camp and the best player will start.”

If Maye is better than Brissett he’ll have an opportunity to start, yes, but he’ll have to leave zero doubt in the process.

“We’re not sitting here saying that Drake is our starting quarterback,” Mayo reiterated. “I think he understands that. He understands the things that he has to get better at. I think with coaching and — once again the hard work and the coaches that we have the support system from ownership, I think he has a chance to go out there and really play at a high level.”

Maye has always been a project. He’s got minimal starting experience relative to his peers, seemed to take a step back last season and is still just 21-years old. The Patriots believe he’ll be able to tap into that potential that made him the No. 3 pick, though.

“You can talk about potential all you want to, but until you reach it, it really doesn’t matter,” Mayo said. “We do know the man; we know the man is a hard worker and he’s going to do everything he can to be successful.”