It doesn’t sound like Joe Milton looks back fondly on his brief tenure in New England.
The former Patriots third-string quarterback, who was traded to the Dallas Cowboys, turned heads Thursday with a subtle jab at the team that drafted him in 2024. His remark came after he was asked about his relationship with Cowboys starting QB Dak Prescott.
“Dak is a great leader. All respect to him. He literally goes out of his way to help me, no matter if the coach is talking in the meeting, he literally goes out of his way to help,” Milton said, via DallasCowboys.com.
“I’ve been in another building. I know how that goes. It’s just very different over here.”
Considering Gillette Stadium is the only other NFL building Milton has worked in, it’s clear he wasn’t thrilled with his rookie experience in Foxboro.
Milton was third on the Patriots’ quarterback depth chart behind veteran Jacoby Brissett and fellow rookie Drake Maye. The sixth-rounder didn’t play until Week 18 vs. the Buffalo Bills, when he completed 22 of his 29 passes for 241 yards and a touchdown while rushing for a TD in a surprising 23-16 win.
Three months later, Milton was shipped to Dallas in a move he says he wanted to happen.
“Definitely, I preferred it,” Milton said. “That was something me and my team put together. They were able to get it done, I really didn’t have to do much or say much. So just shout out to my agent, that’s pretty much it.”
The deal made sense for both sides. The Patriots have seemingly found their franchise quarterback in Maye, so Milton would have been stuck backing up a QB younger than him. In Dallas, he’ll get to learn under a three-time Pro Bowl QB in Prescott, and he’ll likely be the next man up if the veteran goes down.
Currently, the Patriots’ QB room consists of Maye, Joshua Dobbs, and Ben Wooldridge.
