Jerod Mayo says he has chosen the Patriots' starting quarterback

Patriots

The selection is there.

Patriots coach Jerod Mayo told reporters Wednesday that he had decided which quarterback would start within the Patriots' season opener on Sept. 8 against Cincinnati.

He didn’t tell reporters which quarterback he had chosen.

“We've made a decision, we just haven't communicated it yet. Honestly, I want the guys to hear it from me first before they hear it from anyone else.”

Wednesday was a busy day because the Patriots continued to work on their roster after trimming it all the way down to 53 players on Tuesday, Mayo explained when asked why the announcement couldn’t be made presently.

“As much as you want to have team meetings, sometimes time doesn’t allow it,” Mayo said.

The Patriots choose from an experienced quarterback Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye, No. 3 overall pick. Mayo confirmed that he has the ultimate say on which quarterback will start.

“If you want to talk about the process, Alex (Van Pelt) and I can have those conversations, but he also gets input from his coaches and ultimately the decision is mine.”

Mayo later added that Eliot Wolf had an influence on the decision-making process.

“He definitely has his opinion, but I would say again, it's my decision,” Mayo said. “A lot of people have opinions on things and I've lost quite a bit of sleep trying to think about those things, but ultimately I would leave it up to myself.”

Brissett said in a recent interview on WEEI that he continues to be the starting quarterback. Brissett was named the starter before training camp, but a late push by Maye has modified the conversation and made the competition significantly tighter.

“I think all players, not just the quarterbacks, have to have the confidence that they should be starters,” Mayo said. “I won't go into too much detail on that. That's his opinion and we all have one.”

Mayo said last week that Maye has outperformed Brissett. However, there are concerns about having the rookie quarterback play behind a struggling offensive line. Mayo noted that things could change after his decision is announced.

“I think it's important to remember that what's good for the team today may not be good for the team in a few weeks,” Mayo said. “I think the challenge is you want to win every single game now, but we're also trying to build something special here.”