The New England Patriots are still in somewhat unfamiliar territory, this is the first year neither Tom Brady nor Bill Belichick have been on the sideline in over two decades. First year Head Coach and former New England player, Jerod Mayo has been doing a good job given the talent that’s currently on this rebuilding roster. New England started this season with returning veteran Jacoby Brissett under center, and Mayo at the time seemed adamant that rookie Drake Maye would be sitting and learning for as long as possible.
After a surprising week one victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, it appeared the Patriots were content with Brissett leading them this season. Brissett struggled to keep the New England offense going, not entirely his fault considering the team lacks offensive weapons outside of Hunter Henry. The rookie third overall pick out of North Carolina, Drake Maye, played well in the preseason and continued to show growth throughout practices. Maye essentially made it impossible for Mayo and the Patriots staff to keep him on the sidelines any further.
Since Maye took over the starting job, he is 2-3 as a starter, but the offense has clearly been better. Drake Maye’s numbers are nothing special, but it is clear he is a talented young quarterback worth keeping an eye on. In his first five starts Maye has thrown for 954 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions. The often-overlooked aspect to Maye’s game though, is his athletic ability when he runs with the ball. Something Patriots fans are certainly not accustomed to seeing. The former Tar Heel has 233 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown to add to his season totals.
Patriots Making Some Calls
New England got spoiled having the best quarterback to ever play the game in Tom Brady for 20 seasons. That means developing a young quarterback is something very unfamiliar with this franchise in the modern day. However, the Patriots made the move to draft Alabama quarterback Mac Jones back in 2021. Jones had a promising rookie campaign, but the following seasons would drastically regress and be traded away to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Kraft family didn’t want to get it wrong this time. After selecting Drake Maye with the third overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Patriots owner Robert Kraft and his family have apparently been reaching out to other teams asking how to handle their rookie signal caller. The Kraft family has been conducting research and asking other teams for advice on the best ways to develop a rookie quarterback in today’s NFL.
Maye Has a Promising Future
It appears as though the New England brass is determined not to repeat the same mistakes, they did during the development of Mac Jones. Or lack thereof. Maye has already shown his playmaking ability, and as any good quarterback does it seems he has elevated the play of the players around him.
The Patriots are a long road to contending for Super Bowls again, but the rebuild is making progress. The defense is bordering being a great defensive unit, and the offense has now found its next franchise quarterback. New England will need to improve their offensive line and add a few more reliable receivers for Maye, but that could easily be addressed this coming off-season. Especially, with the Patriots likely having a higher draft selection.
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