Final thoughts as the ‘Joe Milton Experience’ comes to an end in New England

Joe Milton's New England Patriots career lasted just over 11 months - but what an 11 months it was. On Thursday morning the offseason-long buzz about the New England Patriots trading backup quarterback Joe Milton finally hit its payoff. The team dealt Milton along with a seventh-round pick (217) to the Dallas Cowboys for a fifth-round comp pick (171) in the 2025 NFL Draft. However this is hardly a typical backup quarterback trade - and Milton is hardly the typical backup quarterback. That was the case well before he was drafted by the Patriots. Those who followed our draft coverage last year may remember I referred to Milton as "the most exciting player in the draft," with the caveat that 'exciting' is not the same as 'best.' That was because of Milton's rare traits including his legendary arm strength as well as his mobility at 6-foot-5, 246 pounds. Despite that Milton was never able to fully put his game together in college. He didn't become a full-time starter until his sixth college season, and entered the NFL as a 24-year-old rookie out of Tennessee. With Day 3 of the draft being all about traits though, it made sense when the Patriots drafted Milton in the sixth round, 193rd pick overall (the pick they got in return for trading Mac Jones) despite having taken Drake Maye earlier in the draft. It was a low-risk, high-reward move. The Patriots could develop Milton behind Maye either as a long-term backup and/or eventual trade chip. The downside at the time was viewed as creating an unneeded quarterback controversy - similar to the one the team had between Jones and Bailey Zappe the previous two seasons. Almost immediately, Milton's rare skills were apparent. Even in a training camp featuring the third overall pick quarterback Milton made headlines with deep balls and backflips. That continued into the preseason, during which he showed a higher level of efficiency than expected while still mixing in highlights. https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1821969699602886863 Milton spent the majority of the regular season as the team's third string quarterback behind Maye and Jacoby Brissett, dressing on gamedays as the emergency third QB. That was until Week 18, when Milton replaced Maye after one drive and completed 22 of his 29 pass attempts for 241 yards with one touchdown throwing and another rushing. With that performance he led the Patriots to a 23-16 win - one that cost the team the top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. "Everybody wants to play, everybody wants to be the starter, and that’s great to have that attitude. He was ready for his opportunity there late in the season, which I commend him on, just like I would any player that sat there and went through a long season, a difficult season and then got the opportunity, went out, won a football game, played well, helped his team win," head coach Mike Vrabel said at the NFL Owners Meetings last week. "You have to give Joe credit for being ready to go, going from the third quarterback to being able to win that football game and stay ready and stay hungry,” he added, before praising the effort of the entire team in that season finale as a whole. In a year where so much went wrong for the Patriots, with player development towards the top of that list, the quarterbacks were a noticeable exception. That includes Milton, who visibly made strides from where he was at Tennessee, to the summer, to the final week of the season that ended up being his final game with the Patriots. For a team that for much of the year lacked things to be excited about, 'the most exciting player in the draft' did his best to live up to that billing. That led to the hope this offseason that one of last year's bright spots could help the team moving forwards. At the beginning this offseason featured more quarterback-needy teams than usual, while the draft is abnormally thin at the position - especially at the top. Would Milton's exciting flashes yield the team an exciting return? WATCH: Zolak & Bertrand react to the Joe Milton trade https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s355u2Hy3ls Click here to subscribe to the Sports Hub YouTube page In the end, that didn't end up being the case. The Patriots flipped Milton for a pick 22 spots higher than where they took him the year before, while including a seventh-round pick to get the deal done. Keep in mind that was fun as it was to watch him play, his best moments came against the Bills' backups, and late in preseason games against players that would be cut in favor of those teams' eventual backups. That is something that other teams most likely considered when negotiating with the Patriots. Factoring that lack of proven production against startling-level talent, that return is in line with what backup quarterbacks have gone for in recent years. Earlier this offseason, Kenny Pickett was traded for a fifth-round pick and Dorian Thompson-Robinson. A similar deal last year saw Malik Willis dealt for a seventh-round pick. https://twitter.com/RealAlexBarth/status/1907819371960926491 It's also worth noting that Milton reportedly wanted out of New England, where he was going to be blocked by Maye from truly competing for a starting job. At the same time, last month it was reported that the Patriots wanted to do right by him in sending him somewhere he would have a better chance to compete. But that's where the trade to the Cowboys is puzzling. While Maye's job security was likely going to be insurmountable for Milton to overcome, the same could be said for Dak Prescott in Dallas. The 32-year-old signed a four-year, $260 million contract extension with the Dallas Cowboys this past September that doesn't have a clear out for the team until at least after the 2026 season. What the difference could be is not in the starting quarterback job, but the backup. Was the plan for Milton to move up as the backup behind Josh Dobbs - who was chosen by this coaching staff rather than the one that picked him last year - or was he going to remain in the third string role? Meanwhile in Dallas the only other quarterback on the roster is (former Patriot) Will Grier, who didn't join the team until November last season and like Milton was an addition made under the former head coach (although Brian Schottenheimer was Dallas' offensive coordinator last year). Milton should have a much easier path to the No. 2 job in Dallas, compared to what he could have had in New England. Joe Milton should have a good chance to win the backup quarterback job in Dallas. Allowing Milton to dictate his landing spot likely didn't cost the Patriots significant draft capital. In reality if they wanted more in return for Milton there was one clear option - wait to trade him. Instead of moving him now, the Patriots could have continued to keep Milton on the team. Whether it was him showing continued growth this training camp and preseason, another team getting more desperate at quarterback due to injuries, or both, there was room for Milton's value to increase. Why not wait? For one, there's no guarantee his value would go up. It's a new offensive system and a new coaching staff, which could lead to different results. The big reason though is likely tied to that original concern when Milton was drafted, and that is the tone in the locker room. With Vrabel's focus on team culture, that's not something that should go overlooked. ESPN's Mike Reiss pondered shortly following the trade that the deal "was driven as much by QB-room dynamics as anything else," in order to "clear the runway for Drake Maye." Drake Maye and Joe Milton during OTAs as rookies last spring. Last year, Milton handled being the second rookie quarterback on the team in stride - as by all accounts he did in similar situations in college at both Michigan and Tennessee. He played the role of the backup quarterback well. But it wouldn't be fair to expect him to do that forever, especially after making the most of the chances he got last year - even if they weren't against top competition. Milton, like any pro athlete, is a competitor and sooner or later was going to want a real chance to compete. The Patriots could have held on to Milton, and bet on his trade value rising. In doing so though, they also would have been risking creating that sort of quarterback controversy that had fans worried 11 months ago. There's an argument to be made that his traits panning out would have made it worth the risk. That's especially true if the Patriots want to once again carry three quarterbacks on the roster, in which case they may end up just using the pick they received for Milton on his replacement. Instead, the Joe Milton Experience moves on from New England. From whether or not the team was right to draft him, to what to make of his highlights over the summer, to the franchise-changing Week 18 win there's a lot to debate about a tenure that wasn't very long. One thing shouldn't be a debate though - the sixth-round pick backup quarterback gave us his fair share of excitement.