Patriots Country

New Patriots QB Joe Milton III Sounds Off on Viral Arm Strength

The New England Patriots secured another big time thrower to their QB room.

Jared Koch

Joe Milton throws a pass at Tennessee Pro-Day in Knoxville, Tenn., Wednesday, March 27, 2024.
Joe Milton throws a pass at Tennessee Pro-Day in Knoxville, Tenn., Wednesday, March 27, 2024. / Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY

The New England Patriots were a team to raise some eyebrows during day three of Saturday's draft. With the 193rd overall selection, the Patriots have selected QB Joe Milton from Tennessee.

After deciding to go quarterback at the top of the first round with UNC's Drake Maye, New England went double up on the position with Milton in the sixth. The 6-foot-5 signal caller stands out as an intriguing prospect with elite physical tools and insane arm strength, despite not being completely refined with his technical skills.

Still, it's his arm strength that gets people talking. Videos of Milton circled social media during this year's pre-draft process, casually slinging the rock 80 yards down the field, effectively getting scouts to look his way as a developmental QB down the depth chart. Enter the Patriots, who were the team taking the flier on the Volunteer.

But when you ask Milton about his strength, he'll mention that it's a trait that wasn't always part of his game. According to Alex Barth on X, his ability to be a deep ball thrower grew over time.

"I know growing up, my arm was not that strong," Milton said. "My mom used to say it was because I used to throw the ball over the top of buildings and try to go run and catch it on the other side. Other than that, I'll say like, growing up it was probably like 50 to 60, but you know, as I got older and stronger and kept working at my craft, it got way better for sure."

During his final season with the Volunteers, he started in 12 games, where he posted 2,813 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, and five interceptions on a 64.7% completion rate. He also handled a career-high 78 carries for 299 yards in 2023, opening the door for his ability to be a dual-threat under center.

Milton went to touch on his viral orange-throwing video posted to Tennessee's socials a few months back, where he went on to voice he could out-do his previous performance if he got another go at it:

"The orange was pretty fun, but I think I can throw an orange further than that. That was right after practice and that was a game week, so it was pretty tough to throw it as far as I wanted to, just because my arm was already tired from practice. But I feel like if I was given an orange again, I would throw it further than that for sure."

Now that Milton's in town, expect to see more electric throws during both practice and training camp as he guns for his chance to earn a coveted spot on the Patriots' 53-man roster.

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Jared Koch

JARED KOCH