Throughout training camp, Jakobi Meyers has been there for Tom Brady. Not only has Meyers been present for every practice — which has been notable amid a rash of injuries at the receiver position — but Meyers has also been one of Brady’s favorite targets during team drills.
With Meyers excelling in the preseason, it seemed natural that he and Brady would link up in the quarterback’s 2019 debut in the third preseason game against the Carolina Panthers on Thursday night at Gillette Stadium. But Brady and Meyers didn’t look natural. Brady targeted the undrafted rookie three times for zero receptions. On two of the plays, they seemed to miscommunicate about Meyers’ route, which led to frustration from Brady.
“I was like just, ‘Man, I’m really getting yelled at by Tom Brady,'” Meyers told reporters after the game.
Though he sounded a bit starstruck three weeks into preseason, Meyers emphasized his frustration not to connect with Brady. He finished the game with seven receptions for 74 yards, but for him the focal-point seemed to be on those first three targets, all incompletions.
“Definitely [frustrated], because I want to go out there and put my best foot forward every day, especially as an undrafted rookie,” said Meyers, an NC State alumnus. “All I can do is learn from it … and not think about it too long.”
At one point, Brady pulled Meyers aside for a sideline coaching.
“Tom’s played for a long time, so when he wants to sit down and talk, you give him an ear,” Meyers said. “He was basically just telling me what I need to do, what I don’t need to do. I just trying to listen to everything he says — good or bad — and soak it up and get better.”
Brady, meanwhile, downplayed the struggles between he and Meyers. The 42-year-old quarterback explained that in the preseason, particularly on a short week, the Patriots are cobbling to together an offense on the fly. With so much general installation work, New England couldn’t spend the necessary time to study the Panthers and develop a full game plan. Brady said that’s why many of the team’s newer receivers, like Meyers, struggled on Thursday night.
“Sometimes, they think their not a part of the route, and then the team plays a particular coverage and they’re part of a route,” Brady said. “Those are learning moments for all of us.”
As has been the case for most of the preseason, when rookie quarterback Jarrett Stidham entered the game, he and Meyers began to link up with regularity. But this game was Meyers’ only chance to connect with Brady in a preseason game, as Brady surely won’t play in Week 4.
With Julian Edelman, Demaryius Thomas, N’Keal Harry returning from injury and Josh Gordon returning from suspension, Meyers needed to make the most of every opportunity to prove himself. It’s good for Meyers to excel with Stidham — it would be better if he was excelling with Brady.
