On the first day of Patriots training camp, Jerod Mayo didn’t shy from proclaiming who the team’s starting quarterback is, making clear that Jacoby Brissett enters camp as the team’s No. 1 signal caller.
While Mayo left open the door for No. 3 pick Drake Maye to win the job “if he goes out there and lights it up,” the Patriots were clearly impressed enough by Brissett through OTAs and minicamp to name him the starter entering training camp.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt — Jacoby (Brissett) is the starting quarterback at this point in time,” Mayo said. “…It’s clear Jacoby is the most pro ready guy we have.”
The Patriots have been consistent even since drafting Maye that they’re pleased with Brissett as their quarterback. They signed him to a one-year, $8 million contract this offseason both because of what they think he can do on the field and how they think he can mentor a young quarterback. So their faith in him to this point isn’t shocking.
Still, it’s noteworthy how much of a ringing endorsement they’ve given Brissett and just how clear they’ve made it that he’s the starting quarterback — even if Mayo did leave open the door for Maye to win the job in the coming six weeks.
“It could absolutely happen,” Mayo said.
It’s noteworthy too that this new Patriots front office in the post-Bill Belichick era is being led by Eliot Wolf, whose Hall of Fame dad Ron ran the Green Bay Packers for two decades. Wolf spent the early years of his career with the Packers and was there when the team kept Aaron Rodgers on the bench as a high-profile rookie. So perhaps it wouldn’t be shocking if a Wolf-led team was content to let Maye, who was the second-youngest quarterback drafted at 21 years old, start his NFL career on the bench behind Brissett.
But Tuesday was just the day the full team was scheduled to report for camp. Wednesday is the start of practices, and a chance for Maye to win the job, even if at this point the Patriots continue to make clear Brissett is their starting quarterback.
“Obviously that’s the ultimate goal and I don’t take that lightly,” Brissett said. “… Looking forward to going out there and proving it every day.”
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(Photo: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)
