Joe Milton outplaying Drake Maye at Patriots training camp is both awesome and scary

While the New England Patriots did select two quarterbacks in the 2024 NFL Draft, No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye was chosen to be their franchise savior. Sixth-round dart throw Joe Milton is a rehabilitation project with a crazy arm who can eventually be a high-end backup.

Despite the wishes of fans who want to see Maye on the field as soon as possible, Jerod Mayo seems committed to naming veteran Jacoby Brissett the Week 1 starter. Considering how Maye is going through the usual rookie bumps and bruises as he adjusts to the pro game, that's not a crazy strategy.

While fans shouldn't be too alarmed about Maye struggling in training camp, one thing that should catch their eye is just how well Milton has played. Ben Volin of the Boston Globe seems to believe that Milton has been the far superior quarterback when compared against Maye.

According to Volin, if one didn't know their draft status beforehand, it would be impossible to tell which player was the No. 3 pick and which one was a sixth-rounder. While this is great news for Milton, it is certainly taking some of the shine off Maye's start to his pro career.

Patriots rookie QB Joe Milton reportedly outplaying Drake Maye at training camp

On one hand, Milton is almost three years older than Maye and played in college for six years at Michigan and Tennessee. Milton's biggest plus trait is having one of the strongest arms in the league already, and training camp is the perfect place to show off context-free throws deep down the field.

However, Milton came from a remedial Tennessee offense that asked him to do very little pre-snap and post-snap. The fact he has been able to take to a professional offense this quickly, perhaps quicker than Maye, is a bit surprising.

At the end of the day, however, fans shouldn't necessarily be melting down at this revelation. Milton has had some turnover and sack problems at camp so far, and Maye has impressed with a few sterling throws of his own. Maye is still on track to be the team's quarterback for the next 10 years, provided he gets a bit more polish.

Negativity might be permeating this fanbase after a wretched 2023 marked the beginning of a rebuild, but there's positivity to be found in this report. While fans would like to see Maye be better immediately, Milton turning into a solid player could give them more depth and stability at quarterback.