Joseph Jay Milton III[1] (born March 6, 2000) is an American professional football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines and Tennessee Volunteers. Milton was selected by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL draft.
 Milton in 2024 | |
| No. 19 – New England Patriots | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Quarterback |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | March 6, 2000 Pahokee, Florida, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Weight: | 246 lb (112 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Olympia (Orlando, Florida) |
| College: | Michigan (2018–2020) Tennessee (2021–2023) |
| NFL draft: | 2024 / round: 6 / pick: 193 |
| Career history | |
| |
| Roster status: | Active |
| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
Early life
editMilton attended Olympia High School in Orlando, Florida.[2] He committed to the University of Michigan to play college football.[3][4]
College career
editMichigan
editMilton spent his first two years at Michigan (2018, 2019) as a backup to starter Shea Patterson.[5] During those two years, he played in eight games, completing 6 of 11 passes for 117 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions and also had two rushing touchdowns.[6]
Milton competed with Dylan McCaffrey to be Michigan's starter in 2020.[7][8] Milton was considered the favorite after McCaffrey decided to transfer.[9] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan's season was shortened to only six games.[10] Milton started the first three games but steadily lost more playing time to Cade McNamara as the season progressed.[11] Milton passed for 1,077 yards, four passing touchdowns, and four interceptions to go along with 38 carries for 109 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown in Michigan's 2–4 season.[12]
Tennessee
editMilton transferred to Tennessee, where he was named the team's starter going into the 2021 season.[13] During the Volunteers' second game of the season against Pittsburgh, Milton suffered an injury, and Hendon Hooker, a fellow transfer quarterback from Virginia Tech, replaced him in the lineup.[14] He recorded a passing touchdown against #1 Georgia in relief in the 41–17 loss on November 13.[15] Milton played in a relief role in six games for the rest of the 2021 season.[16]
In the 2022 season, Hooker was the primary starter for the 11–2 Volunteers.[17] Milton played the backup role for most of the season. He had productive outings in relief of Hooker with multiple games going over 100 yards passing and scoring at least one passing touchdown.[18] On November 19, against South Carolina, Hooker sustained a season-ending ACL injury, making Milton the starter for the rest of the season.[19][20] Milton made his first start of the season against Vanderbilt. He passed for 147 yards and a touchdown in the 56–0 victory.[21] Tennessee qualified for the Orange Bowl against #7 Clemson.[22] In the game, Milton passed for 251 yards and three touchdowns in the 31–14 victory to earn MVP honors.[23]
Milton began the 2023 season as the Volunteers' starting quarterback. He threw for two passing touchdowns and ran for two rushing touchdowns in a 49–13 victory over Virginia.[24] Following three total touchdowns in a 30–13 win over Austin Peay, Milton and the Vols had their first setback against Florida on September 16.[25][26] To start Tennessee's 45–14 victory over UTSA in the following game, Milton had an 81-yard rushing touchdown on the Vols' first offensive drive. The play marked the longest rushing play by a quarterback in program history.[27] Following conference victories over South Carolina and Texas A&M, Milton had 271 yards and two passing touchdowns in a loss to Alabama.[28][29][30] After a 2–2 stretch, Milton passed for 383 yards and four touchdowns to go along with two rushing touchdowns in a 48–24 victory over Vanderbilt to end the regular season. The performance marked the most touchdowns accounted for by a Volunteer in a single game since 2009.[31] Milton finished his final season with the Volunteers with an 8–4 record after deciding to opt out of the Volunteers' bowl game.[32][33]
College statistics
edit| Season | Games | Passing | Rushing | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| Michigan Wolverines | ||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | 4 | 0 | — | 3 | 4 | 75.0 | 58 | 14.5 | 0 | 1 | 146.8 | 7 | 31 | 4.4 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 4 | 0 | — | 3 | 7 | 42.9 | 59 | 8.4 | 1 | 1 | 132.2 | 5 | 16 | 3.2 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 6 | 5 | 2−3 | 80 | 141 | 56.7 | 1,077 | 7.6 | 4 | 4 | 124.6 | 38 | 109 | 2.9 | 1 | |
| Tennessee Volunteers | ||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 8 | 2 | 1−1 | 27 | 55 | 49.1 | 375 | 6.0 | 2 | 0 | 113.5 | 28 | 129 | 4.6 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 9 | 2 | 2−0 | 53 | 82 | 64.6 | 971 | 11.8 | 10 | 0 | 204.3 | 18 | 77 | 4.3 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 12 | 12 | 8–4 | 226 | 348 | 64.5 | 2,769 | 7.2 | 20 | 5 | 141.4 | 75 | 292 | 3.9 | 6 | |
| Career | 43 | 21 | 13−8 | 329 | 540 | 60.9 | 4,303 | 8.0 | 37 | 11 | 142.5 | 153 | 620 | 4.1 | 11 | |
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 5+1⁄8 in (1.96 m) |
235 lb (107 kg) |
33+3⁄8 in (0.85 m) |
10+1⁄4 in (0.26 m) |
4.62 s | 35.0 in (0.89 m) |
10 ft 1 in (3.07 m) | ||||||
| All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[34][35][36] | ||||||||||||
Milton was selected by the New England Patriots in the sixth round (193rd overall) of the 2024 NFL draft.[37] The Patriots obtained the pick by trading quarterback Mac Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Milton signed his rookie contract with the Patriots on May 10, 2024.[38] Milton was named the third-string quarterback behind Jacoby Brissett and fellow rookie Drake Maye to start the 2024 Season.
References
edit- ^ "Joe Milton III". University of Tennessee Athletics. August 3, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2024.
- ^ Hays, Chris (October 26, 2020). "Michigan starting QB Joe Milton quietly worked his way from Olympia High to leading Wolverines". HSSports. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ Wenzel, Matt (May 8, 2017). "4-star QB Joe Milton commits to Michigan". mlive. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
- ^ Snyder, Mark (May 9, 2017). "Michigan QB commit Joe Milton has a big arm, is ready to travel". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
- ^ Chengelis, Angelique S. (December 30, 2019). "QB Joe Milton committed to Michigan despite 'very difficult challenge' of waiting". The Detroit News. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ McMann, Aaron (September 1, 2020). "Michigan QB Joe Milton's busy offseason learning 'multiple pitches'". mlive. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Brown, Brandon (April 6, 2020). "Make A Choice: Dylan McCaffrey Or Joe Milton". SI.com. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Chengelis, Angelique S. (March 5, 2020). "Dylan McCaffrey, Joe Milton to make Michigan quarterback battle 'interesting'". The Detroit News. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Sang, Orion (September 16, 2020). "Michigan football quarterback Dylan McCaffrey reportedly opts out, will transfer". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ "2020 Michigan Wolverines Schedule and Results". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ Sang, Orion (November 19, 2020). "Michigan football QB job up for grabs: Joe Milton, Cade McNamara to battle this week". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ "Joe Milton 2020 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ Scarborough, Alex (August 30, 2021). "Vols to start Michigan transfer Milton at QB". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 3, 2021.
- ^ Wilson, Mike (September 11, 2021). "After Joe Milton injury, Tennessee football turns to Hendon Hooker at QB". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
- ^ "Georgia at Tennessee Box Score, November 13, 2021". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ "Joe Milton 2021 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ "2022 Tennessee Volunteers Schedule and Results". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ "Joe Milton 2022 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ Low, Chris (November 20, 2022). "Vols QB Hooker done for season with torn ACL". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ "Joe Milton's journey back to starting quarterback at Tennessee". WBIR. November 22, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ "No. 9 Tennessee routs Vanderbilt 56-0 in rain for 10th win". USA TODAY. Associated Press. November 26, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ "Clemson, Tennessee Selected to Play in Capital One Orange Bowl". NBC 6 South Florida. December 4, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ Reynolds, Tim (December 31, 2022). "Vols romp behind MVP Milton". Arkansas Online. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- ^ "Virginia vs Tennessee Box Score, September 2, 2023". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Austin Peay at Tennessee Box Score, September 9, 2023". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Hays, Chris (September 20, 2023). "Tennessee QB Joe Milton shakes off UF loss, looks ahead". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Harralson, Dan (September 24, 2023). "Joe Milton's 81-yard run is Vols' longest by a quarterback in program history". Vols Wire. USA Today. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Harralson, Dan (October 1, 2023). "Tennessee defeats South Carolina in dark mode uniforms". Vols Wire. USA Today. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Lesar, Al (October 14, 2023). "Willliams returns punt for go-ahead TD, Tennessee beats Texas A&M". Chron.com. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Sparks, Adam (October 21, 2023). "Tennessee football can't turn Tide at Alabama after leading at halftime, outscored 27-0 in second half". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Sparks, Adam (November 25, 2023). "Joe Milton helps Tennessee football crush Vanderbilt on senior day with 6 TDs". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Joe Milton 2023 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Tennessee QB Joe Milton opts out of Citrus Bowl for NFL draft, leaving Nico Iamaleava to start". AP News. December 27, 2023. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
- ^ "Joe Milton III Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
- ^ "Patriots select Joe Milton III with No. 193 pick in 2024 draft". NFL.com. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
- ^ "2024 NFL Draft Scout Joe Milton III College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
- ^ Buchmasser, Bernd; Hines, Brian (April 27, 2024). "Instant grade for the Patriots drafting QB Joe Milton in Round 6". Pats Pulpit. Retrieved May 3, 2024.
- ^ "Patriots Sign Three of Their Eight 2024 Draft Picks and Sign Nine Rookie Free Agents". Patriots.com. May 10, 2024. Retrieved May 11, 2024.