Zolak & Bertrand: Will the best QB play for the Patriots in Week 1?
On Friday’s edition of Zolak & Bertrand, the crew dove into whether the Patriots will play Drake Maye if he’s the best quarterback in camp.
Can’t kill the confidence of a rookie QB…
Marc Bertrand: Cameron Wolfe certainly has an in with Jerod Mayo, but that second part, where he’s talking about how Jerod Mayo believes rookie quarterbacks are not ready to play. He then goes to the second part and says, well, they are going to compete though, and the best guy will play. I don’t believe him. I don’t believe that is true. I think the first part is true because I don’t think those two things can align. And I think he revealed it a little bit in the first part, which is, this guy’s familiar with Alex Van Pelt. He’s a veteran. He’s had X amount of starts as an NFL quarterback. He’s not going to be razzled by going in there playing games. He’s got a head start. If he names him the starter right now, he’s going to have headlines everywhere and all kinds of questions to answer. He also doesn’t want to kill the confidence of a rookie quarterback, or make him believe that he doesn’t have an opportunity to compete because he wants to get the best out of the kid. And that’s what the second part is. The best guy is not going to play. The best guy will be Drake May. He’s not starting week one. The only question now is which week does he get in there?
Scott Zolak: Once he gets up to speed on the offense, like I said yesterday, what’s the call? What system are you running? And that’s what Jacoby is gonna have a massive advantage from Day 1. Where it’s going to look smoother, the huddle will break more, you won’t get so many terms. Like, what’s the call again? Drake’s going to do that. He’s going to do that for a while. And it’s about the seamlessness of it when it looks like it’s fully functional. That’s our start to insert him.
Marc Bertrand: We’re going to have Drake Maye with a headset on, with the clipboard, with the ball cap, watching and observing and seeing the speed of the game. Seeing the flow of the game. Seeing all of it up close and personal at the NFL level for at least one month, preferably two. I don’t think we’re going to get that far because as I said, by game 6 or 7, you’ll be real tired of watching Jacoby Brissett. And by then things will have settled with the play caller and the offensive line and then it will be Drake May day. That’s what it will be.
Listen to the full segment!
Big name former Patriots lined up for upcoming Tom Brady roast
Rob Gronkowski
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – JANUARY 13: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots reacts with Rob Gronkowski #87 during the third quarter in the AFC Divisional Playoff Game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Gillette Stadium on January 13, 2019 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
ESPN’s Adam Schefter shared on Monday four former teammates who will get their turn roasting Brady. That includes Gronkowski, who caught more passes (635) and had more receiving yards (9,494) and touchdowns (90) than any other player did from Brady. He’s also one of the few players to play with Brady in both New England and Tampa. Gronk is no stranger to being in front of the cameras, so he should be ready to roast.
Julian Edelman
Jan 20, 2019; Kansas City, MO, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) celebrates with Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman (11) during the second half of the AFC Championship game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
Brady’s other top target from his Patriots days will also be one of the roasters, according to Schefter. Edelman has poked fun at Brady before on social media and on his podcast Games With Names, and now will get to do so in-person.
Randy Moss
Nov. 30, 2009; New Orleans, LA, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) bump fists with wide receiver Randy Moss (81) during pregame warmups against the New Orleans Saints at the Louisiana Superdome. Credit: John David Mercer-US PRESSWIRE
Moss only spent two full seasons with Brady in New England (not including the 2008 season when Brady tore his ACL in the season opener, or the 2010 season when he was traded after four games), but they were some of Brady’s best years. Moss’ personality is well-known, and should carry over into the roast.
Drew Bledsoe
FOXBOROUGH, MA – JANUARY 21: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots talks with Drew Bledsoe during the Lamar Hunt trophy presentation after the AFC Championship Game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Gillette Stadium on January 21, 2018 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
This should be good. It’s now been 23 years since Brady took Bledsoe’s job as the Patriots’ starting quarterback, so he’s had plenty of time to think up material on his former backup. Bledsoe might ultimately be the most interesting roaster, if not for…
Bill Belichick
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 24: Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots talks with Tom Brady #12 before the game against the Dallas Cowboys at Gillette Stadium on November 24, 2019 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)
That’s right. Belichick and Brady, back together again. After years of roasting Brady’s film in team meetings in front of the rest of the roster, now Belichick will have a chance to roast Brady in front of the entire world. Will ‘Johnny Foxboro’ make an appearance?
