New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo dismissed any rumors on Friday morning that he may be considering replacing veteran Jacoby Brissett with rookie Drake Maye as the team’s starting quarterback.
The first-year coach’s words come after the team lost its second game in a row, falling to the New York Jets, 24-3, on “Thursday Night Football.”
Maye replaced Brissett under center for the team’s final drive of the contest, which spanned the last 4:24 of the game.
The 31-year-old Brissett went 12-for-18 for 98 passing yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions for an 80.3 passer rating while taking five sacks for 46 yards. Brissett is now 42-for-69 (60.9 completion percentage) for 368 passing yards, one touchdown and no interceptions for a 79.9 passer rating through three games this season.
Maye, meanwhile, made his NFL debut on Thursday, finishing 4-for-8 for 22 passing yards with no touchdowns or interceptions and a 56.2 passer rating. The North Carolina product added two carries for 12 yards (including an 11-yard first-down scramble) and was sacked twice for 13 yards.
The Patriots selected Maye with the third overall pick during the 2024 NFL Draft, and he ended the preseason 21-for-34 for 192 passing yards with one score and no picks. Brissett had less playing time in the exhibition contests, going 5-for-14 with 36 yards, no touchdowns and one interception.
After Brissett suffered a minor shoulder injury during the preseason finale, Mayo admitted that the youngster had outplayed his counterpart over the summer. The former Pro Bowl linebacker later clarified his comments, and the team opened the season with Brissett as QB1.
Even with the team’s Week 3 embarrassment in primetime, it seems like New England will continue to run out Brissett as the starter, at least in Week 4.
