Jerod Mayo left the door open for Drake Maye to start in Week 1

Patriots

“Again, we don’t have a starting quarterback right now. When we do, we’ll announce it, but he could very well be QB1.”

If recent comments from new Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo are any indication, rookie quarterback Drake Maye still has a chance to become the starter in Week 1.

Mayo spoke with WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” on Monday morning, followed by a press briefing with Patriots reporters before training camp practice. The topic of Maye and the quarterback competition came up frequently.

As for Maye specifically, Mayo told WEEI that in the short time he’s been with New England, he’s seen the third overall pick rise.

“He’s definitely made progress and I would say overall his huddle mastery and his progress has been pretty good,” Mayo said.

“He still has a lot of work to do. Let’s not forget, he’s a rookie quarterback and things are going to come up that he’s never seen before,” the Patriots coach quickly added. “You have to remember that the preseason games are usually about defense and offense, that’s really fundamental. So he’s still going to develop and see new things, but I like where he is.”

New England’s projected roster for training camp clearly featured veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett at the top, and Mayo said in July that he believes there is “no doubt that Jacoby is the starting quarterback at this point.” The 31-year-old former Patriots third-round draft pick returned to his original team as a free agent in the offseason.

According to Mayo, Brissett has already earned the respect of his team.

“Jacoby has been in this league for a long time and he has really earned the right – and I would say the respect of his teammates and also the coaches – to go out there and move the ball,” Mayo said. “Well, when you think about that, even right after signing Drake (third overall), we came into this season with a plan, a development plan.”

“We’re going to stick with the plan,” Mayo continued. “It may not be a popular plan, but we’re doing what we believe is right for the organization, not just in the short term, but in the long term.”

Of course, Mayo didn’t go into much detail about the Patriots’ plan for Maye and the rest of the quarterbacks, but he did offer some general thoughts when asked about them by ESPN’s Mike Reiss in the press conference.

“I’m not going to get too into the plan, but basically it’s just the extra work,” he said. “We’ve talked about the tools that we have, and all of our quarterbacks are really taking advantage of those — whether it’s the virtual reality, the extra walk-throughs, the meetings with each other — they’re just doing all those extra things that are really paying off.”

Could the plan change if Maye exceeds expectations?

“Yes, 100 percent,” Mayo replied during the radio interview. “We’re still in training camp. We still have our warm-up game against Washington.”

“We don’t have a starting quarterback right now,” he said. “When we do, we’ll announce it, but he could very well be QB1. Jacoby could be, too, so we’ll just have to wait and see how it goes.”

Regarding the recent progress of his rookie quarterback, Mayo said that development is also noticeable in the rest of the team.

“He’s made some good shots and I’d say his teammates can see his confidence is growing as well,” he said of Maye. “Hopefully it’s only uphill from here.”

Maye only played one series in his first preseason game, but managed to get more playing time in the Patriots’ second meeting against the Eagles in August.

Against Philadelphia, Maye completed 6 of 11 passes for 47 yards and scored the Patriots’ only touchdown of the game in a 14-13 loss. Aside from the stats, Mayo praised the rookie’s work ethic.

“It’s mostly down to his hard work and dedication to his craft,” he said. “This guy comes in early and leaves late every day. He’s one of those guys, he’s done a great job. I would also say the coaches have done a good job of meeting with him one-on-one and making sure he’s comfortable in this game, but he’s definitely getting better.”

To figure out who could win the quarterback competition, Mayo laid out his criteria.

“I would say at all positions it’s just about consistency. You don’t want to ride the waves,” he said of Maye, “and he’s proven that here recently and we’ll see if that trend continues.”

“We always have to remain flexible with the plan,” Mayo concluded. “Right now, everything is going in the right direction and hopefully it will continue to get better.”

The Patriots will face the Commanders in the team’s final preseason game on August 25. New England will then face the Bengals in a Week 1 matchup on September 8 at 1 p.m. in Cincinnati.