Heading into his sophomore season, the buzz around Drake Maye was pretty intense as the Patriots kicked off their 2025 OTAs in May. But that excitement quickly turned into a bit of concern after Day 1. Maye went 11-for-17 passing but threw four interceptions—definitely not what fans expected. MassLive.com’s Mark Daniels even called it “unusual” and out of character for the guy. Why?
Well, last year, over five open practices between OTAs and minicamp, Maye threw just three interceptions total. And now, in just two 11-on-11 series, he had more picks than all of last offseason combined. The big reason? A new offense under the returning offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels. The OC is returning to New England for his third stint. And let’s face it—Maye’s clearly still getting used to the playbook.
Having said that, McDaniels is no stranger to elevating QBs. The OC helped take Tom Brady’s game to another level and turned Mac Jones into a Pro Bowler. Maye had a rocky start, no doubt. But McDaniels isn’t worried at all—he’s actually impressed with his QB so far. The kicker? Maye backed that up big time, completing a solid 87.5% while nailing 14 of 16 passes. And the plot thickens from here.
As the Patriots wrapped up their OTAs, Greg Bedard of Boston Sports Journal recently admitted that Maye was calmer and comfortable during the latest OTA practice, which he saw as a big change in the second-year quarterback. “I mean, Drake Maye showed not the full arsenal, because I wouldn’t say there were any like huge deep shots, but what really impressed me was that he looked a lot more comfortable,” he noted. His processing was better, his identification of where the holes were going to be in the defense was really good.”
“The big change for me was how comfortable and calm [Drake Maye] was in this practice.”
“He was decisive, his reads were good and he played fast.”
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“He had this hole shot sort of on a corner route to case on booty down the left sideline… He had another sort of like wheel route, perfect pass…The big change for me was just like how comfortable and calm he was in this practice, and like you didn’t even really notice the hitch or anything like that.” The guy improved his passing accuracy during the OTAs, completing 75% of his passes.
Maye reportedly engaged in over 30 passing attempts, confirming that the guy is involved in more reps than in the previous sessions. With the wrap-up of the OTAs, Maye will now move towards the mandatory mini-camp, which the Patriots are set to kick off next week. And the way things are shaping up, it looks like Mike Vrabel and Co. kind of have an upper hand in the AFC division ahead of the 2025 season.
Drake Maye and the Patriots could have an easier 2025 season
The Patriots were once used to be one of the greatest dynasties in NFL history, no doubt. But now? Well, let’s just say what’s left feels more like ruins than a dynasty. And it all started after Tom Brady left New England. Things got worse when Robert Kraft decided to part ways with the legendary head coach, Bill Belichick, in 2024. And the Patriots felt his absence.
New England recorded one of the worst seasons in 2024, fired their head coach, and now they’re looking to rebuild the dynasty from scratch. First, they brought Vrabel, then McDaniels re-joined his former team, and one by one, Vrabel and Co. had a complete roster shuffle. Now that the next season is just three months away, everyone’s speculating how the Patriots’ season will turn out.
Well, a few folks out there believe that the Patriots might have an easier 2025 season. Why? See, the Patriots are set to clash against several 2024 playoff teams, no doubt. But Jared Dubin of CBS Sports believes that at least five teams that the Patriots are scheduled to play against won’t succeed much in the 2025 season. Dubin’s prediction? The Browns, Colts, Dolphins, Saints, and Steelers. The reason?
Three of the five teams still have no certain quarterbacks, two, to be precise, now that Aaron Rodgers is set to sign a deal with the Steelers. But still. Some of the teams in the AFC division are projected to win just 5.5, which sounds like a pretty good thing for New England, given that they’re hoping to flip the script in the AFC.
And Drake Maye’s team would surely like to grab the opportunity. Analysts have predicted the Patriots for 7.5 wins. And as the offseason progresses, the team would like to break the current projection. After all, that’s what they need to do to make it to the playoffs.
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