FOXBORO – Will Jacoby Brissett or Drake Maye be the Patriots’ quarterback in Week 1 of the regular season? As the Patriots enter the final week of their preseason training camp, head coach Jerod Mayo doesn’t know yet. So there are some interesting weeks ahead until September 8 in Cincinnati.
For most of the summer, everything pointed to Jacoby Brissett as New England’s starting quarterback in Week 1 against the Bengals. The veteran was signed in the offseason as a bridge QB for the player the Patriots selected with the third overall pick, Drake Maye.
Maye was well behind Brissett in New England’s lineup entering the offseason, but has improved greatly in recent weeks. The 21-year-old played better than Brissett in last week’s preseason loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, and after some more solid workouts from Maye over the weekend, even Mayo himself is heating up the competition for quarterback on the practice field.
“We don’t know right now,” Mayo said Monday when asked who the team’s starting quarterback would be in Week 1. “We have one more preseason game and then the week after that — when I know, I’ll let you know.”
Drake Maye still has a chance to become the Patriots’ starting quarterback
While Mayo didn’t reveal much of substance in conversations with reporters on the field, he was much more candid during his Monday morning radio interview on WEEI when asked about the chances of Maye being his team’s starter in Week 1.
“One hundred percent, and we’re still in training camp,” Mayo told the Greg Hill Show on Monday morning. “We still have our preseason game against Washington. And again, we don’t have a starting quarterback right now. When the time comes, we’ll announce that.”
“But he could very well be QB1, just like Jacoby,” Mayo added. “So we’ll just have to wait and see how it plays out.”
While he doesn’t want to set anything in stone, that’s a much different tune than the one Mayo used on July 23, when he said Brissett was the team’s starter “at this point.” That Mayo won’t even name a starter “at this point” shows that the competition could really go either way in the coming weeks.
Mayo said the team’s development plan for Maye is proceeding as planned and heading in the right direction, and that will likely continue. He acknowledged the team will need to be flexible with Maye and his development, but declined to get into the specifics of the plan.
But Mayo said Maye has “absolutely” gotten better and he’s seen a big increase in confidence from the rookie quarterback. Mayo says that’s because Maye is comfortable in New England’s offense.
“He’s settled into his routine and that’s important for any rookie,” Mayo told reporters in Foxboro. “He’s got to make his progress and build trust with the guys up front. He’s got to make his progress and make the right shot.”
Mayo said this is the result of Mayo’s commitment to improvement and all the extra work he does before and after practice.
“He’s a guy that comes early and leaves late,” Mayo said of Maye. “I would also say the coaches did a good job of meeting with him one-on-one and making sure he was comfortable in the scheme. He’s definitely getting better and that was part of the plan.”
Jacoby Brissett still sees himself as Patriots starter
After practice on Monday, Brissett said he wasn’t paying attention to all the noise outside or the headlines about the competition for the quarterback position.
“I can’t worry about that. I just go out and do my job,” he said. “I’ve been in this league long enough. Nothing would shock me, but I just do my best. I stayed in this league because I didn’t listen to the noise from outside. If I had done that earlier, I would have been out of this league a long time ago.
“I go out every day and try to do my best,” Brissett added. “I’m not too worried about the competition, I’m more worried about myself and being a good teammate.”
Mayo said he was pleased with how the veteran handled his recent difficulties.
“He’s the ultimate guy who’s ready for the next play,” Mayo said of Brissett. “That’s what you need, you just have to keep going and not get too high or too low.”
Anyone who is healthy will play against Washington on Sunday night
Brissett played three series against Philadelphia last week before Maye took over for the second and third quarters. On Monday, Mayo said the Patriots have a lot of work to do on Sunday night in their final game of the season against the Commanders, so we’ll see a lot of starters in action during the exhibition game.
“Anyone who’s healthy is going to play,” Mayo said. “I’m not sure what Washington is going to do, but it really doesn’t matter. It’s about what we need to do, what we need as a team.”
“For me, playing football is the only way to get better at football,” added Mayo. “It’s important to be there live and also to improve our fitness.”
