Patriots fans are already building Joe Milton III's irrational hype machine

The New England Patriots opened their preseason slate with a 17-3 win over the Carolina Panthers on Thursday night.

It was a night of new beginnings for New England. Jerod Mayo picked up his first win as the Patriots head coach. Quarterback Drake Maye, who was selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, completed his first pass in the NFL. Rookie wideout JaQuae Jackson caught his first touchdown at the professional level.

As promised, the Patriots allowed all four of their quarterbacks to enter the game, although backup quarterback Bailey Zappe saw most of the work. For the most part, the game provided little excitement on the offensive side of the ball. Then, New England debuted their sixth-round rookie quarterback.

Patriots fans overreact after Joe Milton dazzles in preseason debut

Quarterback Joe Milton III entered the game in the third quarter, and he instantly injected life into the sputtering Patriots offense.

Milton completed four of his six pass attempts for 54 yards and one touchdown. Milton dazzled on the ground and through the air. Late in the third quarterback, he evaded multiple sacks and ran backwards nearly 20 yards before finding a lane to scramble for a first down.

In the fourth quarter, he zipped a 38-yard touchdown pass to Jackson down the left sideline.

The overreactions began to pour in immediately. Like any other fanbase, Patriots fans immediately jumped to bold conclusions. One fan claimed Milton was already navigating the pocket better than former quarterback Mac Jones ever did. Another implied that Maye's role as the future of the franchise may be in jeopardy. One fan even said the team "wasted" a draft pick on Maye.

Let's take a look at the reactions on social media.

While Milton's performance should be applauded, it came against a vanilla scheme and backups for the worst team of the 2023 season. It's always a good idea to remember that there have been plenty of quarterbacks who have shined in the preseason. In fact, Zappe was one of them.

Then again, Milton wouldn't be the first sixth-round quarterback to shine in New England.

With rain affecting the playing conditions, the Patriots allocated just one drive of playing time for Maye. It was enough for him to dip his toes in the proverbial water, but it was clear that the play calling was conservative — he was handcuffed to short dump-offs and screens in a quick passing game.

Maye's snaps were uneventful and his footwork still appeared quite unpolished on a few of his dropbacks. He completed two of his three passes for 19 yards, including a 13-yard screen pass to running back Antonio Gibson.