Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Joe Milton didn’t hold back at the Super Bowl this week while discussing his exit from the New England Patriots last year.

Milton, a sixth round selection by the New England Patriots in the 2024 NFL Draft, was traded to the Dallas Cowboys following his rookie season.

When the trade was made, MassLive’s Karen Guregian reported that New England traded Milton because the former Vol “fancied himself a starter” and was confident that “he was good enough to give (Drake) Maye a run, if not overtake him for the top job.”

Milton, who noted this week that he still texts with Maye, spilled the beans about why his time in New England ended so quickly, despite his impressive performance to end the 2024 season.

Joe Milton says he felt disrespected in New England

Milton joined WEEI this week at the Super Bowl and he didn’t hold back while discussing his exit from New England.

“It was a part of my decision to make that happen,” said Milton of the trade that sent him from the Patriots to the Cowboys. “I went to my agency and told them that I wanted to leave — just because it was the best opportunity for me. I went through 16 games and I can count on my hand how many reps I got. So I feel like I didn’t get better. That was something that I kept asking my coaches there, like, ‘Why did I get drafted here?’ So I didn’t just want the feeling like I’m begging someone just for an opportunity. Not saying I had to beg them.”

“I just felt disrespected,” continued Milton. “Not because they drafted him (Maye) first, but I wasn’t playing, for one. For two, I wasn’t getting talked to. But three, [they] couldn’t tell me why I got drafted here. I wasn’t getting [any] reps. So every rep I took on scout team, I made sure the defense understood that. I don’t care what the play was — how I play in the game is how I practice…I’m running over y’all’s defense. I’m throwing the ball over your head. It got to the point at the Patriots, I’ll be honest, it got to the point where I threw a deep ball to my left over Gonzo (Christian Gonazalez), and while the ball was in the air, I turned around and just looked at (Jerod) Mayo. Eliot (Wolf) was right there, and they couldn’t do nothing but just look at the ball. The ball got completed. The scout team receiver scored, and they just shook their head. It got to that point…I mean, I just felt disrespected.”

Milton landed in a nice spot in Dallas. The Patriots, meanwhile, are set to face off against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX on Sunday in Santa Clara.

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