New England Patriots
“I think just, by the way he works, the way he loves ball, I’m really not surprised.”
Patriots QB Drake Maye made his weekly appearance on “WEEI Afternoons” on Monday, with the second-year signal-caller touching on topics that ranged from New England’s upset win over the Bills to the struggles of his alma mater, UNC.
Here are three takeaways from his interview:
Delivering in primetime
Sunday represented a sizable breakthrough for Maye and a rebuilding Patriots team, with Mike Vrabel’s coaching and vision seemingly validated with an upset win over what was a 4-0 Bills team in Buffalo.
While New England benefited from some sloppy execution on the part of the Bills (three turnovers, 11 accepted penalties), the Patriots also were elevated by the play of Maye, who out-dueled Josh Allen on a national broadcast.
While Maye didn’t record any touchdowns in the 23-20 win, he was efficient, mistake-free and routinely generated chunk plays through the air by targeting Stefon Diggs, Hunter Henry, and Kayshon Boutte.
He completed 22-of-30 passes for 273 yards, including a 13-for-14 showing in the second half as New England countered — and ultimately triumphed — over a legitimate Super Bowl contender.
Maye saved his best for the end of the game.
With the game knotted up in a 20-20 deadlock with a little over two minutes remaining, Maye orchestrated the first game-winning drive of his career, putting together a seven-play, 37-yard sequence that ended when kicker Andy Borregales booted a 52-yard field goal for the final points of the night.
“Where else would you rather be? Sunday Night Football — a chance to beat the Bills at their place, and the ball in my hands … I think that’s what you’re working for in training camp and all those two-minute drills and working on throwing hole-shots against Cover 2 and little things like that,” Maye said of the opportunity presented on Sunday. “So I think that it felt good and 1759798351 going back out there and regroup and get back after it.”
Sunday was arguably Maye’s best performance of his career, but the young QB has been on the upswing all season as he’s increased his accuracy and limited his turnovers.
Entering Monday night, Maye is second in the NFL in completion percentage (73.9 percent), fifth in passing yards (1,261), fifth in yards per attempt (9.1) and has posted nine total touchdowns to go with two interceptions.
“I think just learning the offense, I think just learning [in] this league and learning to just take what the defense gives you and when they give you big plays, just go for them,” Maye said of his growth this season. “You’re just learning this system, trying to know it.
“And another year playing with these guys and playing more and more games with [Stefon Diggs] and the new guys. So yeah, just another year under my belt. And just try to learn every week and approach it as a new week.”
Building a rapport
One of the primary reasons for Maye’s ascension this season has been the arrival of Diggs, who is looking like the sought-after No. 1 wideout that New England has been in pursuit of for years.
Diggs twisted the knife against his former team in Buffalo on Sunday, reeling in 10 catches from Maye for 146 yards. It marks the second game in a row that Diggs has surpassed 100 yards after posting six catches for 101 yards in the team’s Week 4 win over Carolina.
Diggs is the first Patriots wideout to have back to back 100-yard games since Julian Edelman in 2019.
It’s been an impressive turnaround for the 31-year-old Diggs, who tore his ACL last than a year ago with the Houston Texans. But Maye is not surprised to see Diggs already settle into his role as the Patriots’ top receiving target.
“You know what? I think just, by the way he works, the way he loves ball, I’m really not surprised. His mindset from the time we signed him was, ‘I’m going to be ready to go Week 1.’ And he just continues to get better and better, and look better and better out there on the field,” Maye said of Diggs.
Checking in on the Tar Heels
While Maye and the Patriots are starting to get on a roll, the same can’t be said for Maye’s alma mater at Chapel Hill.
Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels suffered another setback on Saturday — losing to Clemson in a one-sided result, 38-10.
“I tuned into the game a little bit,” Maye said of UNC. “I know it’s the first year with a new staff, and a lot of new players. I know they’ll figure it out down there.”
Even with two victories, Belichick and his staff haven’t exactly inspired plenty of confidence in the direction of the program, considering those two victories earlier this year were against UNC Charlotte and the University of Richmond.
“I’ll support any way I can,” Maye said. “There’s guys I know down there, and just say, ‘Hey, it’s a long season. Keep going.’ Shoot, I think it’s tough.”
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