A former NFL quarterback and college quarterbacks coach is concerned about the potential of Drake Maye following spring reports of New England Patriots OTAs. Maye had up-and-down performances during practices this spring.
Any quarterback entering the league is expected to experience rookie growing pains. As previously discussed on GH, Maye showed some positive development this spring. However, he’s also having difficulty reading defenses and throwing interceptions.
Jacoby Brissett is expected to be the Week 1 starter
Per Chad Graff with The Athletic, Jacoby Brissett is expected to be the Patriots Week 1 starter:
This offseason, Brissett took all of the snaps with the first-team offense. Van Pelt called him the team’s starting quarterback.
That undoubtedly will continue into the start of training camp. And as long as Maye doesn’t dramatically outperform him, Brissett will probably be the Week 1 starter.
Did the New England Patriots overdraft Drake Maye?
Many NFL analysts thought before the draft that Maye would benefit from sitting during the 2024 season. Former NFL quarterback and South Florida quarterbacks coach Shaun King told Tyler Dunne with Go Long that Maye wasn’t worthy of being a first-round pick because he needs to sit behind Brissett. He thinks the Patriots should have traded back from the No. 3 pick:
I think the draft is where teams mess up. I’m telling you now, Drake Maye is not a first-round draft… He’s not. He’s a developmental quarterback. He comes from a great family. I given time to mature and grow into being a more confident, consistent player, he can be OK. But what did you bypass to take a developmental quarterback at three?
He’s not going to beat out Jacoby Brissett. And the way I look at draft value, if I’m drafting something in the top five — no offense to Jacoby Brissett — that can’t beat out Jacoby Brissett, then I’m overdrafting that player.
2024 won’t make or break Maye
Caleb Williams wasn’t going to lead the Patriots team to the Super Bowl this season, though he likely would have beaten out Brissett for the Week 1 starting job. Judging the selection of Maye by Week 1 feels a little premature. No one will care about the No. 3 pick sitting in 2024 if Maye is a successful long-term starter for the Patriots starting next season.
The Patriots invested in Maye, and now they must do all they can to help him develop. Sitting for a year might be in everyone’s best interest.
But if he never develops…that’s another story.
