Patriots HC Jerod Mayo wants former Tennessee QB Joe Milton to improve in specific area

New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo liked what he saw from former Tennessee Vols quarterback Joe Milton last week in the rookie's NFL preseason debut against the Carolina Panthers, but there's one thing that the Milton needs to work on according to Mayo.

Milton impressed with his athleticism and his ability to pick yards with his legs, but Mayo wants to see better ball security from the former Tennessee standout.

"Just watching Joe run around and that athleticism is always a welcome sight," explained Mayo. "In saying that, there are still things for him to work on. One thing would be ball security. I know it looked cool, but it's always a dangerous thing, swinging the ball around like that. But this is a guy who is working hard every single day and getting better."

Milton eluded pressure from a couple of Panthers defenders in the third quarter of his preseason debut, but as Mayo noted, the ball security was a little suspect. Once Milton knew he wasn't going to throw the ball, he's gotta tuck it away.

For now, it looks like Milton is a surefire bet to beat out Bailey Zappe for the No. 3 quarterback job in New England. The battle, however, hasn't been won yet by Milton. He'll have to continue to compete at a high level -- while taking care of the football -- to lock in a spot on the Patriots' 53-man roster this fall.

Related: Former Vols OC Alex Golesh gets candid about taking over a tough situation at Tennessee in 2021