The New England Patriots selected University of Tennessee quarterback Joe Milton in the sixth round of the NFL Draft this past weekend, making him the second signal-caller the Patriots took in this year’s draft.
Last Thursday night, New England chose North Carolina’s Drake Maye with the third overall pick.
But is it possible that Maye will end up being the only quarterback the Pats selected this year?
Some have questioned whether or not Milton will actually change positions. At 6-foot-5 and 235 pounds, there are those who wonder if Milton will end up switching to something like tight end.
However, when asked about the possibility, Milton instantly shot it down.
“You are the first person I have actually heard that from, to be real with you,” Milton told the reporter who posed the question, via Coral Smith of NFL.com. “But, that will never happen.”
Milton would hardly be the first quarterback to change positions, and the Patriots themselves actually have a history of doing this.
New England did it with Julian Edelman years ago, and last year, undrafted free agent Malik Cunningham tried to play some wide receiver.
But Pats head coach Jerod Mayo views Milton as a quarterback. At least for now.
“Yeah, we’ll have to see how that plays out once we put the pads on, but we drafted him as a quarterback,” Mayo said. “We’re in the business of trying to get good football players through the door, and Milton happens to be one of them. Obviously he understands we took a quarterback at 3 in Drake (Maye). One thing that we preach is competition. Everything is about competition, and nothing is given. All of it’s earned. That’s how we thought about the process.”
Will Milton end up going the Edelman route? Or will he become yet another sixth-round pick of the Patriots (cough…Tom Brady) to become a star under center?
We’ll see what ends up happening, but one thing is for sure: New England definitely likes Joe Milton, regardless of where on the field he plays.
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