While Bill O’Brien is getting the New England Patriots’ offense ready to play the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, his previous job performance was coming under fire on the other side of the country. During Thursday’s media availability ahead of the Rose Bowl between Alabama and Michigan, current Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe spoke on his time with O’Brien in Tuscaloosa.

Milroe, a dual-threat quarterback who took over as the starter for the Crimson Tide this year after Bryce Young left for the NFL, was asked if he’d ever had a coach tell him he should be playing a position other than quarterback.

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“All my life, even when I was in college,” Milroe replied. “My own offensive coordinator, Bill O’Brien, told me I should not play quarterback. It is a lot of things I can have motivation on, and that is something I have motivation from.”

Milroe spent two years with O’Brien in Tuscaloosa in 2021 and 2022, before O’Brien was hired as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator this past winter. Both years he backed up Young, the 2021 Heisman winner. Yet this doesn’t appear to be a case of O’Brien trying to help get Milroe out of Young’s shadow, based on one of Milroe’s follow-up answers.

When asked how it felt to be told he shouldn’t play quarterback, Milroe responded, “How would you feel if I told you that you sucked?”

“That is exactly how I felt,” Milroe continued. “The biggest thing for me is to be true to myself and stay the same. Nothing has changed about me. The only thing that has changed about me is that I had an opportunity, and I seized it. I had a bigger purpose than anyone’s opinion. [O’Brien] told me a bunch of positions I could have switched to, but look where I am now.”

• Chris McCulley on Twitter: "Jalen Milroe on Bill O'Brien telling him he should switch positions: @abc3340 "How would you feel if I told you that you sucked?" pic.twitter.com/V3o8kTvXha / Twitter"

  Jalen Milroe on Bill O'Brien telling him he should switch positions: @abc3340 "How would you feel if I told you that you sucked?" pic.twitter.com/V3o8kTvXha

  “Look where I’m at right now,” Milroe concluded. “So, who gets the last laugh?”

  Milroe’s path to leading Alabama to the Rose Bowl and College Football Playoff this year has been an interesting one. A four-star recruit and the 14th-ranked quarterback in the Class of 2021 from Katy, Texas, he spent his first two years at Alabama backing up Young and didn’t see much playing time.

  When Young left for the NFL there was no obvious successor for the starting quarterback job. Milroe, a 21-year-old redshirt freshman, won the job in camp beating out three highly-touted freshman recruits in Ty Simpson, Eli Holstein, and Dylan Lonergan as well as experienced Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner, who transferred to Alabama when former Notre Dame offensive coach Tommy Rees took the offensive coordinator job to replace O’Brien.

  Early on in the 2023 season Milroe showed elite athleticism and a big arm, but struggled to pair the two together resulting in erratic performances over the first two weeks. It led to him being benched in Week 3, but none of the other quarterbacks were able to prove to be better options and he returned in Week 4.

  That benching seemed to light a spark, as Milroe improved dramatically as the season went on. Not only was he able to develop as a passer, but the added threat of him throwing opened up more opportunities to make plays with his legs. A season that saw him benched at the start ended with him leading his team to the College Football Playoff, being named All-SEC second team, and finishing sixth in the Heisman voting. He completed 65.5 percent of his passes for 2,718 yards with 23 touchdowns and six interceptions, and ran for another 468 yards and 12 scores.

  Milroe announced earlier this month he’s returning to Alabama for the 2024 season. He’ll be among the top rising quarterback prospects to watch for the 2025 NFL Draft.

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  Given Milroe’s skillset as a quarterback, it’s hard not to link his comments about O’Brien to another player O’Brien coached this year in New England – Malik Cunningham. A duel-threat college quarterback signed as a UDFA, the Patriots worked to develop Cunningham primarily as a wide receiver, rather than a quarterback. When asked about Cunningham’s position change during the season, O’Brien shared he was one of the Patriots staffers who went to Louisville to work out Cunningham, both as a quarterback and wide receiver.

  With the Patriots’ quarterback issues in 2023, there were significant calls for Cunningham to be more involved either as a package player or full-time quarterback. That never ended up happening, as Cunningham was signed by the Ravens off the Patriots’ practice squad earlier this month. At the time, Bill Belichick suggested part of the reason Cunningham chose to leave was the chance to play quarterback full time in Baltimore.

  Could Cunningham have had a similar assentation in New England to the one Milroe had in Tuscaloosa if given the chance? It’s not exactly apples to apples – NFL competition is much tougher, and relatively speaking Cunningham wouldn’t have the supporting cast around him Milroe did. But when it comes to why the Patriots never bothered to find out, it doesn’t feel like a stretch to say O’Brien may have played a role given how he viewed a quarterback with a similar skillset.

  While Milroe won’t be entering the draft this year, there are a number of other top 2024 prospects set to play in this year’s College Football Playoff. Check out our watch list here.

• Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at [email protected].

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