New England Patriots
The former New England signal-caller pushed back against saying Maye was a top-five QB and called the Patriots “fool’s gold” earlier in the season.
Cam Newton had already doubled down on not buying into Drake Maye and the Patriots this season.
Now, he’s tripling down on his stance.
On his “4th&1” podcast, Newton, a former Patriots quarterback, explained why he believes that the system Maye is playing under now, compared to his rookie year, is the reason for his success.
“Drake Maye is well and capable, has all the upside, and skillset. But last year, under his player’s status, a head coach was fired,” Newton said. “That’s not to say, ‘Aw, man, you can’t say that. That wasn’t all Drake Maye, he was a young quarterback.’ But, does Jerod Mayo have a job right now? Offensive coordinator was Alex Van Pelt. Is he an offensive coordinator anywhere in this league?”
It is quite evident that New England’s coaching staff in 2024-25 is night and day different compared to the personnel currently employed. However, Maye still showed flashes of what he was capable of in his rookie season.
In hindsight, Mayo simply wasn’t ready to be a NFL head coach. Plus, the staff he hired was not good enough to make up for his own shortcomings.
That would likely have been a recipe for disaster for any rookie signal-caller.
Newton went on to attribute Maye’s impressive sophomore campaign to his new Patriots coaches, just as he attributed his lesser first season to his New England coaches of last year.
“Now insert Mike Vrabel. Now insert a dynamic play-caller in Josh McDaniels. The system is right,” he said. “So I can’t just sit up here and say Drake Maye is a game-changer right now because we’ve only had one season of dynamic play.”
To cap it off, Newton declared that not only is Maye not a game-changer, but rather a game manager.
“What I’m telling you is the truth. The person that’s delivering the truth, you may not like. … Drake Maye is a game manager,” he said.
This label sounds similar to the one former Patriots QB Tom Brady was given, especially early in his career, by opposing fans and some media.
Newton even referred to Brady as a game manager in February 2024, but made it a point to call him that as a compliment.
“Tom Brady was playing faster than people were thinking,” he said. “Playing faster than what you’re thinking. His ability to go from one check to the next check, it was masterful. So dare I not mention elite game managing as an art of swordsman to be able to attack a defense. It’s an elite skill.”
The difference is, of course, Brady is regarded by many as the greatest QB of all time, while the 23-year-old Maye has yet to finish his second season in the NFL.
But, Maye is producing an objectively great season. He has thrown for 4,203 yards, fourth-most by any QB. He’s averaging a league-leading (among full-time starters) 8.9 yards per pass attempt, 71.7 completion percentage, 76.5 QB Rating and 112.9 passer rating. Maye’s 30 touchdowns are the third-most in the NFL.
Not to mention, on paper, his receiving corps is largely mid-tier players.
Newton has made his opinion about Maye and the Patriots well-known in 2025-26. In October, he pushed back against Damien Woody’s notion that Maye was a top-five QB in the league. Newton also called New England “fool’s gold” in November, citing its schedule as a reason why he thought the team wouldn’t fare well in the playoffs.
These comments led to Maye brushing Newton off, even saying that he “doesn’t even know what show he’s on” when asked about the former QB’s quotes. This then led to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith calling Maye “a liar,” which only added fuel to the media fire over Maye.
Nevertheless, amidst the outside drama, Maye remained level-headed and put himself atop the MVP conversation as the end of the regular season nears.
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