There is no denying that Joe Milton had an impressive performance on Thursday night. And before I get too far into this, don't think that I'm advocating for the team to waive him during roster cuts.
Milton has the potential to stick around and serve as that third quarterback on the roster.
However, people are being a little too quick to call him the starter over Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye .
When all of that was happening, it was hard not to remember a similarly controversial situation last season with the quarterbacks in New England. Before the 2023 season, the team brought in undrafted free agent Malik Cunningham, who played quarterback at Louisville. The plan, though, was to use him at wide receiver . The parallels are obvious, since Joe Milton is seen as a possible tight end prospect.
But during the preseason, Cunningham got some reps at quarterback and had an insane performance. It was his athleticism and speed out of the pocket that impressed. However, once the season began, it was Mac Jones and then Bailey Zappe who served as quarterback. Cunningham floated between the practice squad and active roster before being signed by the Baltimore Ravens.
People were upset that the young player never got a true chance during the regular season based on that one preseason game. But there is something people are clearly forgetting about these exhibition games.
Very rarely are starters getting full reps on the field, and specifically in the case of the Panthers, they had numerous players sitting out. So Milton wasn't going up against the Panthers' top team, which is already questionable. It was the players who are fighting to make the roster — especially so late in the game.
Fair conclusion
That does not take away from what Milton did on the field . But people shouldn't be immediately saying he needs to be the starter over Brissett and Maye.
The No. 3 overall pick only got one drive, whereas Milton got just over a full quarter to play.
A to Z Sports' Tennessee Vols writer Zach Ragan also provided his thoughts on this topic.
"Joe Milton’s performance on Thursday night against the Panthers was certainly encouraging for the Patriots. But it’s not necessarily a sign that the former Tennessee quarterback is going to rapidly climb New England’s depth chart. Milton has always dazzled with his physical tools. And he can make some plays that make you go ‘wow’. Milton, however, has struggled with consistency throughout his college career. Jim Harbaugh, one of the premier quarterback developers of the last two decades, couldn’t help Milton reach his ceiling at Michigan. And Josh Heupel at Tennessee, another quarterback whisperer, couldn’t turn Milton into a top draft prospect. Maybe something finally “clicks” for Milton in New England. But based on what we saw from Milton at Michigan and Tennessee, it would be wise to temper expectations — especially after just one preseason game," he said.
Mayo also mentioned consistency when talking about Milton, so that's what he has to prove now.
It was an important first step for Joe Milton. But to build a real NFL starting career at quarterback, there are many ones left to take.
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