Jacoby Brissett wants to be best mentor he can be while competing for starting job
Some veteran quarterbacks aren't as helpful to their potential replacement as others are. Ryan Tannehill once said it wasn't his job to mentor Malik Willis.
Jacoby Brissett has no such reservation about helping first-round pick Drake Maye, Bailey Zappe and sixth-round pick Joe Milton III.
In fact, the veteran quarterback is going out of his way to assure the quarterbacks room isn't awkward.
“I’ll just be myself. I have no ego in this to be like ‘I should do this.’ Whatever is for me is going to happen for me,” Brissett said, via Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald. "Whatever is going to happen for the next person is going to happen for the next person. It’s about being ready whenever your time comes. The thing that got me to that mindset was my first year here. I’m the third-string quarterback my rookie year. Take no reps in training camp or OTAs with the first team. And in Week 2, I’m in a game against the Dolphins. You never know when your opportunity is going to come; it’s just about being ready. Whatever is going to happen for me is going to happen for me.”
Brissett, a third-round pick of the Patriots in 2016, returned to the team this offseason as a backup quarterback or a bridge quarterback for the rookie. He has 48 starts in his career with the Patriots, Colts, Dolphins and Browns.
He was a backup and mentor for Sam Howell with the Commanders last season.
“When I was here the first time, you realize everybody’s your mentor that’s older than you in this league or has more experience in, and I hope I’m that for more than just Drake,” Brissett said. “And be a helping person for players on this team. When people ask that to other guys, I don’t understand the bad part. I’m a teammate first. I hope I can be a good teammate to not only him but everybody on this team.”
Brissett or Maye is expected to begin the season as the starter, but Brissett mentioned Zappe as part of the competition, too.
