Patriots’ Jacoby Brissett Makes Bold Statement On QB Competition

The New England Patriots selected quarterback Drake Maye with the third overall pick of the NFL Draft, but they also signed Jacoby Brissett in free agency.

That has created quite the quarterback competition for the Patriots heading into camp, and most feel that Brissett actually has the inside track to win the starting job.

Still, Brissett understands that it won’t be easy.

“I think the good thing about our room is honestly everybody wants to be the guy,” Brissett said, via Evan Lazar of the Patriots’ official team website. “Everybody’s competing to be the guy. That’s what you want. If none of us wanted to play, then our room would be messed up. Like we would be in bad hands in this organization. I think everybody understands that, and everybody wants to play.”

Obviously, New England took Maye with the hope that he will be its franchise quarterback at some point, but the University of North Carolina product is still very raw.

As a matter of fact, Pats head coach Jerod Mayo said that Maye has “a lot to work on” after viewing the youngster at rookie minicamp last weekend.

Brissett is now in his second stint with the Patriots. He was originally selected by New England in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft and learned under Tom Brady for one year before being traded to the Indianapolis Colts.

The 31-year-old made 46 appearance and 30 starts across the next four seasons with the Colts, but he never showed enough to establish himself as a full-time starter.

He did, however, demonstrate that he can be a very capable backup and a decent spot starter.

Following his stint in Indianapolis, Brissett has played for the Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns and Washington Commanders.

He has totaled 51 passing touchdowns and 23 interceptions over the course of his NFL career, completing 61.3 percent of his throws and posting a 85.3 passer rating.

At this point, it actually seems likely that Brissett will end up under center for the Patriots in Week 1, as New England surely does not want to rush Maye.

The Pats don’t exactly have a lot of proven weapons, so they may feel more comfortable turning the reins over to a veteran like Brissett in the early stages of 2024.