Drake Maye was taken with the 3rd overall pick of the 2024 draft, so the New England Patriots are expecting a whole lot out of the former North Carolina star.
In Week 6 of his rookie season, Maye got his 1st career start, and though it took almost a full half to do it, Maye showed the Patriots exactly what they might be getting with him at quarterback.
In the final seconds of the 1st half on Sunday, with the Patriots trailing the Houston Texans, 14-0, Maye calmly dropped back and fired a 40-yard touchdown strike to Kayshon Boutte for his 1st career TD pass.
Yes, it was just 1 TD pass and yes, the Patriots still trailed at halftime, 14-7, in a season that seems like it’s going nowhere, but Maye’s touchdown pass might’ve just been the 1st sign of something better in New England since the Tom Brady-Bill Belichick era ended.
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1845532043394117884
Maye also threw an interception in that 1st half, and that TD pass was New England’s 1st points of the game, but the Patriots are now giving Maye the keys to the offense early in his rookie season, at least for now, as they hope the former ACC Player of the Year at UNC can learn while on the job.
The Patriots entered this game with a 1-4 record.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
