The Patriots drafted two quarterbacks being the first team to do so since the Washington Redskins in 2011 who selected Robert Griffin III second overall and Kirk Cousins in the 4th round.
The 2024 NFL draft took place this past weekend from April 25-27, the New England Patriots held the 3rd overall pick.
Drake Maye, the University of North Carolina native, was the Patriots’s QB of choice to illuminate a light over Gillette. Maye is 6’4” 223 lbs and runs a 4.46-second 40-yard dash, just a hundredth of a second slower than newly acquired Steelers quarterback Justin Fields, who has shown glimpses of talent as a dual threat in the NFL.
The Pat’s other quarterback pick, Joe Milton, was selected in the 6th round, 190 picks after his new teammate Maye. Milton is 6’5” and 235 lbs placing him at about the same height and weight as Bills QB Josh Allen who is one of the best to do it in the modern era.
Maye is currently 21 and will turn 22 just two weeks before the Patriot’s season opener making him among the youngest quarterbacks in the NFL along with newly drafted Minnesota QB J.J. Mccarthy and 2nd year QB Anthony Richardson of the Indianapolis Colts.
Maye was a part of the class of 2021 coming out of high school alongside the #1 overall pick in the 2024 draft Caleb Williams and Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers. He redshirted his freshman year at UNC, which is common for young players and gives them a year to learn the playbook and refine their skills.
The following year, Maye started all 14 games for UNC and held the starter position through the 2023 season, his final college football season before declaring for the draft. Through 26 games as UNC’s starter, he passed for 7,929 yards and 62 touchdowns limiting himself to only 16 interceptions. He also made an impact with his feet rushing for 1,147 yards and 16 touchdowns in his college career.
Joe Milton is 24 years old, one of the oldest and most experienced coming out of the draft. Milton was a part of the same high school class as Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields, both of whom were taken in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft and have 3 years of starting experience in the NFL already.
Milton attended the University of Michigan coming out of high school but transferred to the University of Tennessee in 2021 after only appearing in 14 games over his 3 years there. In his final season, he racked up over 2800 passing yards and 20 touchdown passes going along with only 5 interceptions.
Both of these QBs have elite arm talent and are well-rounded athletes with the ability to escape the rush as well as turn nothing into something. Joe Milton shocked the football world with his combine performance, launching a 70-yard throw with seemingly minimal effort at both his pro day and NFL combine.
The Patriots are hoping that Milton’s six years of college football experience translate well to the NFL as he will be going up against both Maye along former patriots backup in 2016 veteran Jacoby Brissett who has been in the NFL for the starting spot.
