Former Tennessee Vols QB Joe Milton sends strong message to angry Patriots fans
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Joe Milton, a sixth round selection by the New England Patriots in the 2024 NFL Draft, made his first career pro start in the final week of the 2024 regular season. Milton led the Patriots to a 23-16 win against the Buffalo Bills. The win knocked the Patriots out of having […]
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Joe Milton, a sixth round selection by the New England Patriots in the 2024 NFL Draft, made his first career pro start in the final week of the 2024 regular season.
Milton led the Patriots to a 23-16 win against the Buffalo Bills.
The win knocked the Patriots out of having the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft (the Tennessee Titans have the No. 1 pick instead). New England has the No. 4 pick in the draft as a result of the win against Buffalo.
Some Patriots fans, unsurprisingly, are unhappy that Milton led the Patriots to a win — because of the draft order ramifications.
Milton had a message this week for those "angry" fans.
"I need y'all to understand it from my point of view," said Milton during a video posted on Instagram. "Listen, I ain’t played football since preseason. If y’all was in my shoes and y’all was given an opportunity to go play, why would you go out there and not show up and show out? So y'all can talk about me if I lose? Y'all want me to go out there and lose and then y'all will be like 'oh, I'm glad he lost so he can get traded'. And then what? Make that make sense. They wanted me to tank for the first pick, and then y'all gonna be like 'Joe you trash anyway'….like come on bro, I’m gonna go out there and show up and show out.”
Milton is spot on. I understand that Patriots fans wanted the first pick, but it would be absurd to suggest that Milton should've played poorly to make sure that New England got the first pick. That's insane. Getting an opportunity in the NFL isn't easy. And when players get an opportunity, they have to make the most of it (which Milton certainly did) because players never know when they'll get their next opportunity.
This is why the NFL should have a draft lottery system in place. The current setup puts players like Milton in an impossible situation. "Tanking" should never ever be a thing in competitive sports.
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