FOXBOROUGH – The Patriots lacked stability at the most important position in sports.
That’s why the front office opted to move on from Mac Jones and revamp their quarterback depth chart this offseason. Although Drake Maye has been the main attraction at training camp, it’s been Jacoby Brissett who’s leading the way.
Saturday was just another example.
On Day 9 of Patriots training camp, the defense was vocal and playing hard after head coach Jerod Mayo challenged them to improve. Over the previous two days of camp, the offense got the better of this highly touted defensive unit.
For a short while, it looked like the defense had Brissett’s number. Heading into the final 2-minute drill, the veteran quarterback was intercepted twice (once in full-team drills and another in 7-on-7s). But during this final period, Brissett went to work and showed everyone why he’s the favorite to begin this season as the Patriots starting quarterback.
On the first play, Brissett ripped off a 35-yard pass to K.J. Osborn with cornerback Alex Austin in tight coverage. Next, he hit Hunter Henry and DeMario Douglas for back-to-back plays as time was expiring. With one more play and the clock almost at zero, Brissett fired a touchdown pass to Henry in the back of the end zone.
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It was an impressive finish to practice for the 31-year-old veteran quarterback. Afterward, his teammates spoke wonders of his leadership ability and on-field play.
“He’s been great, man. On and off the field, he’s been fantastic,” Henry said. “He’s been fun to work with. He’s been around. He’s been in a lot of different offenses. He’s been in this offense. He’s helping me a lot – seeing things in this offense, how he sees things, and how I see things with different routes. Communication has been great.”
The Patriots Braintrust zeroed in on Brissett in free agency for good reason. First, he’s the perfect mentor to Maye. He also has experience in Alex Van Pelt’s offensive system, so as most players are learning a new offense, this quarterback already knows the playbook. That’s evident by his on-field play.
Brissett operates more efficiently and isn’t afraid to throw the ball deep downfield. His knowledge of the playbook has also made him a huge asset to Maye and other players on offense.
One example is wide receiver DeMario Douglas, who revealed that he sits next to Brissett in team meetings.
“Leadership. He’s been in the game for a minute. He knows – he played under Tom (Brady), so he’s got great knowledge of the game and he’s teaching it to us,” Douglas said. “I sit next to him in the meeting rooms and he’ll be like, ‘Did you see this? Did you see this?’ As we break it down, it gets easier on the field.”
That’s been clear this week. Over the last three practices, the Brissett-led offense has moved the ball and beaten up on the Patriots defense. That’s been a huge change as the defense routinely got the better of the Patriots offense this spring and at the start of camp.
On Day 7, which was Thursday, Brissett finished 8-of-13. The next practice, on Friday, the veteran went 17-of-27. That included a great 2-minute drill where he hit Douglas for a ‘game-winning touchdown’ from the 12-yard line.
On Saturday, Brissett finished 13-of-19 overall. He went 4-of-4 in the final 2-minute drill and that was a stark contrast to the other quarterback’s 2-minute drills. For example, Maye went 0-for-4 as his unit struggled in several areas (separation and pass protection). Joe Milton’s unit also struggled, and the rookie went 1-of-4 in that final period.
After practice ended, it was clear that Brissett was still ahead of every quarterback on the Patriots roster and the only one consistently testing and beating the team’s defense.
“A lot of energy. He’s very competitive,” safety Kyle Dugger said of Brissett. “Every play, play to play, he’s competing. (He has) high level energy. He’s always trying to finish against the defense so that just makes us better.”
