FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The New England Patriots selected University of Tennessee quarterback Joe Milton III in the sixth round of the NFL draft on Saturday, double dipping at the position after selecting North Carolina’s Drake Maye third overall.
Milton admitted he was somewhat surprised to hear from the Patriots at pick No. 193, but said it was still special to hear from the team given the adversity he said he faced during his career.
“I had it all [NFL] spread hats. You just never know where you’ll end up. I was just waiting for any phone call,” he told reporters on a conference call. “It’s a blessing, for sure.”
The 5-foot-5, 246-pound Milton said all of his conversations with the Patriots have been about quarterback play. Some draft analysts wondered if teams might consider him a no-brainer, but Milton bluntly said, “That’s never going to happen.”
The Patriots now have five quarterbacks on the roster, led by veteran Jacoby Brissett, who signed a one-year, $8 million contract in March. Maye is the bullish quarterback of the future, with Milton, 2022 fourth-round pick Bailey Zappe and second baseman Nathan Rourke also on the depth chart.
“Just the opportunity. I feel like wherever you go, no matter what quarterback is taken in this draft, you’re going to have to compete,” said Milton, who relayed that he had developed a relationship with Maye long before the draft. as they met for the first time at a camp run by Peyton Manning before the season. “Nothing is given to you no matter who you are. That’s what I’m looking forward to doing.”
The pick used to select Milton had been acquired from the Jacksonville Jaguars in March in exchange for former starter and first round pick Mac Jones.
This is just the second time in team history that the Patriots have selected two quarterbacks in one draft. The other time came in 1983 with Tony Eason and Tom Ramsey.
Additionally, New England became just the fourth team since 2000 to draft a quarterback after also taking one in the first round. The others are Pittsburgh with Kenny Pickett and Chris Oladokun in 2022, Washington with Robert Griffin III and Kirk Cousins ​​in 2012 and Indianapolis with Andrew Luck and Chandler Harnish in 2012.
“We’re in the business of trying to get good football players through the door and Milton happens to be one of them,” Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo said. “Obviously, he understands we got a quarter on 3, with Drake. One thing we preach is competition. Nothing is given. Everything is earned. That’s how we thought about the process.”
Asked if the Patriots would consider using Milton at spots other than quarterback, Mayo said: “We’ll have to see how that kind of goes when we put the pads on, but we drafted him as a quarterback.”
Milton, 24, spent three seasons at Michigan, mostly behind starter Sy Patterson before starting five games in 2020 and then being replaced by Cade McNamara. He transferred to Tennessee in 2021, starting the first two games of his rookie season before injuring his ankle. Hendon Hooker took over the quarterback reins for the rest of the year and into 2022.
Milton did not reappear until the final two races of 2022 when Hooker suffered a knee injury. The powerful Milton was named Orange Bowl MVP after going 19-of-28 for 251 yards and three touchdowns in a win over Clemson. He then returned as a starter in 2023, taking advantage of an extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 12 starts last season, he was 229-of-354 for 2,813 yards, with 20 touchdowns and five interceptions. He added 78 rushes for 299 yards and seven touchdowns.
His 20 touchdown passes traveled an average of 21.2 yards down the field, second-highest in the FBS among quarterbacks with 20 touchdown passes, trailing only Alabama’s Jalen Milroe (25.4).
From 2021 to 2023, Milton had 17 pass attempts of at least 50 yards through the air. No other FBS player had more than nine in that span.
Summing up his trip on Saturday, Milton said: “It’s a great moment. I’m pretty much speechless at this point.”
Milton became the first Tennessee player selected by the Patriots since Mayo, their former quarterback and current coach, in 2008 (No. 10 overall).
“It’s great to always have two ‘VFLs’ in the building, especially when you’re somewhere other than Knoxville,” Milton said, referring to the “Volunteer for Life” motto.
“Just to reconnect, to get to know each other, it’s going to be great.”
