The New England Patriots have significantly bolstered their roster this offseason under new head coach Mike Vrabel. The franchise is coming off an abysmal season that saw them finish 4-13 overall and fire former head coach Jerod Mayo.
The silver lining to 2024 is that the Patriots seemed to have found their answer at quarterback in Drake Maye. Last year’s No. 3 overall pick showed off his potential despite the lackluster roster around him.
Now, Maye will have a much better offensive line to work with and more options on the outside, like the newest free agent, Stefon Diggs. While Maye is the future, another rookie quarterback who showed potential last season was Joe Milton III.
The former Tennessee Volunteers QB has phenomenal arm talent and was impressive in his Week 18 season debut. The Patriots, however, have decided to go in a different direction at backup QB, signing veteran Joshua Dobbs and trading Milton III to the Dallas Cowboys.
In a pre-draft press conference, Vrabel detailed the organization’s decision to make this trade.
“Well, we felt like his reps were going to be decreased as we worked through the offseason,” Vrabel said. “We felt like – just like every other decision – that we're going to try to do what's best for the team, and that's the decision that we ultimately made.
So, we're excited to move forward with Drake [Maye] and Josh [Dobbs]. That's going to be a tough one for me to continue to say over and over is Drake and Josh. So, I appreciate it guys. Again, I want to thank our scouts; I want to thank our personnel department for getting me brought up to speed in this process, and our coaching staff.”
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While trading Milton III was likely inevitable for the Patriots, there are questions about the timing of this transaction. If the team dealt the 25-year-old earlier this offseason when more franchises were more uncertain about their quarterback situations, or even midseason in 2025, they likely could’ve gotten a much better return than just a fifth-round pick.
Ultimately, if Milton III becomes a quality starter in the NFL, this trade could be a move that the franchise ultimately regrets.
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