Patriots QB Tommy DeVito Postgame Transcript 8/22
PATRIOTS QUARTERBACK TOMMY DEVITO
PRESS CONFERENCE
August 22, 2026
TD: Just want to say thoughts and prayers are with Ja’Quinden [Jackson] and his family, obviously. Not something that you like to see on the field. Obviously, it’s a physical game, so definitely not the way you want the game to start out. I hear he’s doing better though, so thoughts and prayers with him and his family.
Q: You said that you would like to start a little quicker, cut the penalty. What did you think of that first half, and what did you think of your game tonight with the offense?
TD: Definitely some of the same stuff again. Just being ourselves, putting ourselves in tough situations. Second-and-10, that’s not ideal, so still just trying to nip those little things in the bud and get better. But you can see the times where we’re clicking, we’re rolling. Just got to eliminate those negatives to get us rolling faster.
Q: Tommy, the touchdown pass, can you take us through it and what you saw from Kyle [Williams]?
TD: Yeah, it was great. Basically two goes, or three goes. One down the seam, two on the outside. The coverage that they played put an isolation on Kyle, so hold the safety, let him roll, had great protection. Threw it out there, hit him, and let him do the rest.
Q: You described Kyle and what you’ve seen of him since you joined the team, and as he grows, it seems like he’s getting better at running routes and what have you. What do you like about him as a player?
TD: Twitchy. Super twitchy. You can see at any time, anybody wants to come down and press him, it’s like, “good luck.” We saw that last week when the dude pressed him, we threw the fade ball. His release package off the line is second to none. It’s special, and I know he’s still growing as a player with everything else, but it’s awesome to see that, be able to play fast, use his speed, play big and do all the great things he has been doing.
Q: How about watching Behren [Morton] at the end of the game? I know you have the blender in the quarterback room, but does that get put away this week after what you saw?
TD: Oh, he certainly was not in the blender. That was awesome to see. I was so happy for him. First NFL touchdown. I know it’s preseason, but first pass and touchdown is big. Something he’ll remember forever. So that was special. But the way he just operated drives, I think he had two 12-play drives that ended up in touchdowns. 12-play drives are not something easy to overcome, to accomplish, to sustain throughout the field and score, let alone once, but twice. So, testament to him in pushing the guys up-front and the group around him, and finding a way to score.
Q: Tommy, we saw you moving around in the pocket a lot tonight, whether it was to run or just resetting to throw. In these practices where you can’t get hit, how do you work on that? Or is this the setting where that’s something that you are really focused on?
TD: This is a setting to focus on it. Because like you said, in practice, dudes will just run by you. You always get into the argument with the defense – was it a sack? Was it not a sack? You really don’t know until it comes up in game situations, so this is the perfect time for that one.
Q: It felt like this week was a step forward for you from last week. Did you feel that as well, just in terms of the totality of your game tonight? How comfortable do you feel in your role with this team right now?
TD: For sure. Yeah, I feel comfortable, definitely. Like I’ve always said, the more reps, the better, and obviously game reps are even better, because like you just said, that’s the time where you can get hit. And you like to say that everybody plays the same as they do in practice, but when those live bullets are flying, things change a little bit. So, just being able to get comfortable with the guys and everybody around me, and just keep putting our best foot forward. So, I think that, like I said, the two joint practices definitely help coming into this, and just the more competitive periods that we have for myself, the better.
Q: Tommy, from your point of view, how difficult would you say the wide receivers are making the upcoming roster decision for the coaching staff in terms of who makes the 53?
TD: Yeah, that’s the best possible situation you can ask for in an organization, right? To have so many options where you have to make hard decisions like that. But again, that’s just a testament to the coaching and to the guys of just coming in every day, putting their hard hats on and working, and not worrying too much about what that day is like, because I’ve been on the other end of that day multiple times. Been cut twice, stayed on once. So, I’ve been there, but the same thing I tell them, just keep your head down and work – everything will handle itself. But just enjoy the process, enjoy it while you’re here. So those guys have been doing it to the fullest. They’ve been staying late, especially the rookies have been staying late, getting in early. Making sure that they are on top of all their stuff, and they showed it tonight.