The Maye era is being put on layaway. Former NC State quarterback Jacoby Brissett has been handed the keys to car with the starting quarterback job for the New England Patriots for Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season, the team announced Thursday morning. Brissett edged out former UNC-Chapel Hill quarterback Drake Maye for the spot, with Maye holding a clipboard and serving as the backup until he is ready to eventually take over the role.
“We have decided, or I have decided, that Jacoby Brissett will be our starting quarterback this season,” coach Jared Mayo said Thursday. “In saying that, as an organization, we are 100% behind Jacoby. There is no ‘You got a guy right here, you got a guy right there.’ We’re 100% behind Jacoby.”
Asked whether the decision means that Maye would sit for an extended period of time, Mayo said: “I don’t want to get into hypotheticals. We can’t go into the season saying, ‘He’s going to go “x” amount of weeks.’ As long as Jacoby is going out there performing the way we all have confidence in him doing, he’ll be our quarterback this season.”
Mayo said he met with both quarterbacks one-on-one and as a group.
“I feel like we’re all on the same page from an organizational perspective,” Mayo said. “There were a lot of factors that led to this choice. I think the hard part is thinking in the short term and the long term at the same time. As an organization, though, we feel like Jacoby gives us the best chance to win right now.”
Embed from Getty ImagesSquaring off against the high-powered Cincinnati Bengals on the road in a hostile environment will mark the 49th start of Brissett’s nine-year career, which spans over eight seasons at the NFL level. The start will also mark Brissett’s third in a Patriots uniform after he was drafted by Bill Belichick and New England in 2016 and started in two games while then-starting quarterback Tom Brady was recovering from a concussion.
Brissett getting the call is also a historic feat at the NFL level, making him the 15th black quarterback to open the season as a starter. Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports pointed out just how ground breaking the occasion is for the NFL.
“The historic feat comes one year after 14 different Black quarterbacks started in Week 1 of the 2023 campaign, breaking the record of 11 set the year prior. The record for Black representation at the game’s most important position has now been broken four times in the last five years, and Black quarterbacks account for almost 47% of all starting jobs at the position.”
It is obvious that Brissett is meant to be a bridge to Maye eventually becoming the starter, but he has also been the clear-cut starter throughout camp, according to coach Mayo. But after spending last season as the primary backup with the Washington Commanders and only playing in three games with zero starts under his belt, this is the perfect opportunity for Brissett to prove himself.
At 32 years-of-age, Brissett has constantly been on the move as a nomad, finding new homes where he can be a mentor and show younger quarterbacks the ropes, while also getting coveted opportunities to see the field with his veteran savvy and experience. With a young team around him and still plenty left in the tank, Brissett finding creative ways to win with this squad could help him in the present and the future.
