Report: Joe Milton III makes the New England Patriots 53-man roster
Joe Milton III will make the 53-man roster for the New England Patriots, according to a report from ESPN NFL Nation reporter Mike Reiss. The Patriots are cutting Bailey Zappe and keeping Jacoby Brissett, Drake Maye and Milton.
“The Patriots have informed QB Bailey Zappe of their intention to release him, per sources,” Reiss reported Tuesday morning. “This leaves Jacoby Brissett, Drake Maye and Joe Milton III on the depth chart.”
NFL teams have until 4 p.m. Eastern Time Tuesday to reduce their active rosters to 53 players.
Milton in three preseason appearances for the Pats completed 11 of 30 passes for 152 yards and a touchdown and ran 11 times for 54 yards. The former Tennessee Football quarterback was selected by New England in the sixth round of the NFL Draft in April, taken with the 193rd overall pick.
Joe Milton turned heads with ‘mesmerizing’ throws during training camp
The Boston Globe’s Ben Volin wrote early in training camp that Milton that was the “wow” quarterback at Patriots camp, not fellow rookie and first-round pick Drake Maye.
“Through four weeks of spring practice and two days of training camp,” Volin wrote, “(Milton) has been mesmerizing.”
Volin described Milton as “an athletic freak,” with Milton listed at 6-foot-5, 246 pounds.
“He is the one with the extraordinary arm strength, and the tight, quick release,” Volin wrote, “launching 70-yard bombs and zipping lasers to the sideline with an effortless flick of the wrist. Maye can make all the throws, but not like Milton does.”
Colin added that he wasn’t trying to start a quarterback controversy or say that Milton was better than Maye. Just that Milton provided the eye candy.
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“In these early practices,” he wrote, “Milton, not Maye, is the quarterback that you can’t take your eyes off.”
Joe Milton at Tennessee: 4,159 pass yards, 32 TDs, 5 INTs
Milton started his collegiate career at Michigan, then transferred to Tennessee in 2021. He threw for 1,194 yards, five touchdowns and six interceptions in 14 games at Michigan. He had 4,159 yards, 32 touchdowns and five interceptions in 29 games at Tennessee. He finished his Tennessee career with 2,813 yards, 20 touchdowns and five interceptions last season.
He played six years of college football and was a former four-star prospect in the 2018 recruiting cycle. He was ranked as the No. 17 quarterback nationally in his class and was the No. 42 overall player in the state of Florida at Olympia High School in Orlando.
The Patriots selected Maye in the first round at No. 3 overall, before taking Milton in the sixth round on Day 3 of the NFL Draft.
“I feel like everywhere you go,” Milton said in May, “no matter what quarterback got selected in this draft, no matter where you go, you’re going to have to compete. Nothing’s just given to you, no matter who you are. So no matter where you go, you’re just going have to compete. So that’s what I’m looking forward to do.”
