Drake Maye is Taking His Game to the Next Level: Coach Reveals the Biggest Way the Young QB Has…

New England Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye began the regular season as a backup behind veteran journeyman Jacoby Brissett but has since made eight straight starts and is now cemented as the club’s QB1.

In a piece published Wednesday, ESPN’s Mike Reiss mentioned how Patriots quarterbacks coach T.C. McCartney recently revealed that “the area in which he has seen the most growth with Maye is in his confidence” over the past few months.

“He’s always been a confident guy, but until you’re doing it, until you’re the man and the starter, you kind of take a backseat,” McCartney said about Maye. “He’s really stepped forward and been the leader and guy we need on offense.”

Maye unofficially established himself as an outspoken leader when he met with offensive players following what he felt was a disappointing practice last month. He also has accepted blame for interceptions even when replays have suggested wide receivers were probably more responsible for those turnovers.

Analysts have noted that Maye improved aspects of his game, such as his footwork while developing as a QB2 through early October. Nevertheless, some New England fans probably can’t help but wonder if the 3-10 team would have a couple more wins had first-year head coach Jerod Mayo started the third overall pick of this year’s draft right away.

According to Pro Football Reference, Maye began Wednesday ranked 15th in the NFL among qualified players with a 58.0 adjusted QBR for the season. That same website projects Maye could have entered New England’s Week 14 bye on pace to record a minimum of 21 touchdown passes with two rushing scores had he been the team’s Week 1 starter. To compare, Jayden Daniels of the Washington Commanders is on track to tally 20 passing touchdowns and eight scores on the ground.

Daniels is currently the betting favorite to earn Offensive Rookie of the Year Award honors.

The Patriots were always going to struggle to notch wins this season with or without Maye in the lineup due to an overall lack of talent on the roster. With that said, he was New England’s best quarterback during the preseason, and there are reasons to believe some veteran players wanted Maye to play over Brissett in Week 1.

If nothing else, McCartney’s comments may help explain why the New England locker room was allegedly “teetering on mutiny” as Brissett continued to start through the end of Week 5.