FOXBORO — Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo announced to players Thursday morning that Jacoby Brissett has won the quarterback competition and will start Week 1 against the Bengals, NFL Media first reported.
Mayo’s decision to start Brissett over rookie third-overall pick Drake Maye does not come as a major surprise. Mayo even hinted at it Wednesday, saying, “I think it’s important to remember what’s good for the team today may not be good for the team weeks down the line. So, I think the challenge is you want to win every single game now, but also we’re trying to build something special here in New England.”
Mayo said Wednesday that he made a decision earlier in the week and planned on announcing it Thursday after meeting with quarterbacks and the entire team.
Brissett took every first-team rep in organized team activities and training camp this spring and summer. He also started all three of the Patriots’ preseason games, finishing 5-of-14 for 36 yards with an interception.
Mayo acknowledged Monday that Maye did outplay Brissett but that multiple factors were going to go into the decision.
“One is the total body of work, whether we’re talking about the spring or the entirety of training camp. I would also say oftentimes we forget about just the overall experience that a guy like Jacoby has, which will also be weighted in the decision that we have to make here in the near future,” Mayo said.
Maye was 21-of-34 for 192 yards with a touchdown through the air and carried the ball seven times for 32 yards with another touchdown.
The rookie began outplaying Brissett midway through training camp, starting with an Aug. 13 joint practice with the Eagles. That continued through the Patriots’ final two preseason games against the Eagles and Commanders.
Maye, 21, only started 26 games in college at UNC, however, and was considered “raw” as a prospect. Brissett, 31, is 18-30 in 48 career starts since being selected by the Patriots in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft out of North Carolina State. He’s started games with the Patriots, Colts, Dolphins and Browns. He backed up Sam Howell with the Commanders in 2023.
Brissett played one season with the Browns under current Patriots offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, who served the same role in Cleveland. Brissett was 4-7 as a starter in 2022 and completed 64% of his passes for 2,608 yards with 12 touchdowns and six interceptions.
In his career, Brissett has completed 61.3% of his passing attempts for 10,574 yards with 51 touchdowns and 23 interceptions. The Patriots traded him after his rookie season to the Colts for wide receiver Phillip Dorsett, but at the time, he was buried on the depth chart behind Tom Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo.
Brissett signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Patriots before they drafted Maye with the idea that he would be a bridge starter to or mentor for a rookie quarterback.
The veteran quarterback said Tuesday on WEEI that he was still planning as if he was the starting quarterback. He was the first quarterback to take individual drills in practice Wednesday.
Mayo was not initially scheduled to speak to reporters Thursday morning, but the Patriots scheduled an 8:30 a.m. news conference for Thursday morning on Wednesday night.
The Patriots still have Joe Milton III as a third-string quarterback behind Brissett and Maye. The Patriots waived quarterback Bailey Zappe on Tuesday during 53-man roster cuts. Zappe, a Patriots 2022 fourth-round pick, signed with the Chiefs’ practice squad.
Zappe and Mac Jones served as the Patriots’ starting quarterbacks in 2023, when the team went 4-13, which led to them picking Maye third overall in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Despite Brissett being named the starter, there are people within the organization who believe that Maye has played so well that it’s a matter of “when” not “if” he’ll overtake Brissett this season.
For now, however, the Patriots’ starting offensive remains uncertain. Of the five starting positions, only center, where David Andrews will play, is settled. Potential left tackle Vederian Lowe and left guard Sidy Sow are injured. Mike Onwenu will play right guard or right tackle, depending on injuries. Chukwuma Okorafor will likely play left tackle or right tackle, also depending on injures. Other potential starters include rookies Layden Robinson and Caedan Wallace.
Some people around the league believe that until the Patriots’ offensive line is settled, then Maye should sit, and ultimately, there’s a feeling around the team that this season should be more about developing young players than winning the most games. And if starting Maye right away hinders his development, then it’s not worth the risk.
The Patriots were the final team to announce their starting quarterback. The Steelers announced that Russell Wilson would start over Justin Fields on Thursday.