Rob Gronkowski is the latest Patriots icon to defend decision to start Jacoby Brissett over Drake Maye

"I think it was a great play to start Jacoby Brissett, let Drake [Maye] develop."

The Patriots’ decision to start Jacoby Brissett at quarterback over Drake Maye to open the season might have been controversial to some, but a few of the franchise’s icons support the move.

Rob Gronkowski became the latest former Patriots player to join that group. In an interview with Bleacher Report’s Scott Polacek, Gronkowski said that it’d be best for Maye to sit for a bit and learn from Brissett before taking over at some point during the season.

“I expect Drake Maye to play, I’m just not sure exactly when,” the former Patriots tight end said. “Maybe halfway through the season. I think it was a great play to start Jacoby Brissett, let Drake develop. Jacoby is a veteran, he knows how to handle situations that Drake wouldn’t know how to handle, especially pressure coming off the edge and up the middle.

“The game can be fast for a rookie, and the supporting cast around Drake isn’t that up to par either. It’s great to let him develop and let Jacoby handle blitzes and guys when they aren’t blocked on the offensive line blunders that let someone free.”

Gronkowski’s point about the Patriots’ supporting cast has been a common sentiment among those who believe that it’s best for Brissett to be the team’s starting quarterback to open the season. New England’s offensive line was unimpressive during training camp, notably struggling during a joint practice with Philadelphia before committing numerous penalties in its preseason finale. It’s also unclear what the Patriots’ starting offensive line will look like in Week 1.

Additionally, New England didn’t make any notable signings to improve its wide receiver room, which ranked last in average separation last season, per Next Gen Stats. It added receivers Ja’Lynn Polk (second round) and Javon Baker (fourth round) in the draft, but it’s obviously tough to project how much of an impact they’ll have right away.

As questions about the Patriots’ offensive supporting cast continue to linger, Devin McCourty previously pointed to that as part of the reason why he would start Brissett over Maye to open the season. However, Tom Brady said he thought Maye should open the season on the bench due to his common belief about all young quarterbacks.

“I’ve gone on record to say that I think it’s best in my opinion for young quarterbacks, rookie quarterbacks to kind of watch a veteran do it,” Brady told Fox Sports’ “The Herd” on Tuesday. “There’s so much that goes on and quarterbacks need to process so much information so quickly.”

“I think if you can have someone — I sat behind Drew Bledsoe my first year — what a great player he was, someone I got to watch and learn from,” Brady added. “Aaron Rodgers watched behind Brett Favre. Patrick Mahomes watched behind Alex Smith. When you have a real pro in front of you, they can really help with that leaning curve.”

While Gronkowski, McCourty, and Brady believe that starting Brissett to open the season was the right decision, there are still some who believe that Maye is the better option between the two. In fact, Jerod Mayo said that Maye had outplayed Brissett following the end of the Patriots’ preseason. But the Patriots coach added some recent clarification to that comment.

“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 told WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” on Monday. “So as we talk about the development plan we know what it is internally. But that was definitely intentional.

“We know what Jacoby can do. He has played a lot of ball in this league, we see him every day in practice and we know what he has done in the NFL, as well. I have full confidence in Jacoby leading our team into the season. And the players feel the same way. Those guys selected him as a captain.”

As Mayo has constantly cited the Patriots’ developmental plan for Maye on how it’ll make their decisions about the quarterback, he hasn’t said when the rookie might make his first start. Whenever that happens though, Gronkowski will have high hopes for Maye.

“Drake Maye has a lot of potential, he’s going to be the guy in the future,” Gronkowski said. “I think the team will struggle a little bit this year, but I think at the same time they are on the right path. They are moving in the right direction. They have a core staple of guys that they signed in the offseason. Give them two or three years, and they could have a team in the future.”