The New England Patriots selected their starting quarterback for Week 1, and it wasn’t the player head coach Jerod Mayo said played the best during preseason. The first year head coach made a comment during the preseason, saying that the rookie Maye “surpassed” veteran Jacoby Brissett.
That comment led many to believe that Maye could have a solid chance at the starting job, despite all offseason looking like the role was Brissett’s to lose.
Mayo caught some heat for that comment, especially after his extremely short press conference when he announced the team’s starter and it wasn’t the QB he praised not long before. He has now explained his comments and what the team’s plan was before the season.
“I should have given more context to the comment at the time. Drake had more playing time in the preseason than Jacoby, and that was intentional,” Mayo said. WEEE.
During Mayo’s press conference last week, he initially said “we” when referring to who had picked the starter, but quickly corrected himself to say “me”. Although Mayo may be more cooperative with the front office than Bill Belichick, he made it clear that the decision is still going through him.
“As head coach, I have the final say [starting, depth chart decisions]. I do value the opinions of others, and Eliot [Wolf]the opinion of is certainly appreciated. But as the head coach, I have the final say with the quarterback.”
What’s right for the team now may not be right for the team down the line, even a few weeks from now. Mayo said as long as Brissett plays well, he will remain the starter for the 2024 season, but there is always a chance they will make a change.
“If you’re not playing well, if he’s not giving our team the best chance to win games, no matter the position, then we have to look at different options. And I think that’s healthy stress. I think that’s healthy competition ,” Mayo said.
Maye is undoubtedly the future of the team, but now it’s about balancing what’s right in the “short and long term at the same time.” The #3 overall pick was in the competition and just didn’t do enough in the offseason to convince Mayo, if Mayo was really the only one making the call, that he was ready for the big leagues.
The Patriots also have significant issues entering the season, specifically their offensive line, which is tough for a rookie to play behind.
The team plans to continue to develop Maye and allow him to progress.
“We talk about, not only in the game, but also in practices, getting those mental repetitions, and he’ll know what every play is. He’ll do his checks and stuff on the sideline and continue to develop like that. And he’ll develop through practice He will get representatives still with the first team and also the performance team.”
Whether Mayo’s decision was the right call is impossible to say and either way there could be “what ifs” with the first round pick. Let’s take a deep dive into their performances in the preseason to determine exactly how they compared:
Brissett’s preseason performance:
Neighborhood rating: 14.6
Completions/attempts: 5 of 14
Completion percentage: 35.7
Passing yards: 36
Passing touchdowns: 0
Withdrawals: 15
Maye’s pre-season performance:
Outfielder: 86.9
Completions/attempts: 21 of 34
Completion percentage: 61.8
Passing yards: 192
Passing earthquakes: 1
Quick touchdowns: 1
Withdrawals: 38
Maye has Brissett beat in every category, so Mayo’s “outclassed” comments weren’t far off. Even if the plan was to play Maye more, Brissett’s performance does not give much hope for the season. The pre-season doesn’t tell the whole story and Mayo emphasized the importance of practice in the past and how much that would go into the starting decision.
