'I'm not going to be Tom Brady. I'm just going to try to be Drake Maye'
The New England Patriots have fumbled at the quarterback position ever since Tom Brady departed the franchise after the 2019 NFL season.
After Brady, the Patriots rode one season with Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer under center before drafting Mac Jones, who was believed to be the next franchise quarterback.
All of the experiments failed, and New England entered the 2024 NFL draft with the third overall pick.
Eliot Wolf devised a plan to overhaul the position by trading Jones, signing veteran backup Jacoby Brissett and finally, selecting Drake Maye with the Patriots’ first-round pick.
Maye shared his excitement to join the Patriots moments after being on stage with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, before meeting with New England media on a Zoom call from Detroit.
After talking about having the opportunity to meet Brissett over the summer, Maye was asked about following in Brady’s illustrious footsteps.
“Tom Brady’s the GOAT. It’s easy to say that. He’s the best to ever play this game,” Maye told reporters, per team-provided video. “I’m not going to be Tom Brady. I’m just going to try to be Drake Maye. And from there, just try to learn from him, get to know him a little bit. And other than that, just try to soak it up and be a sponge and try to learn all I can from him. He’s the man in that town.”
While it’s unknown how often Brady will be at Gillette Stadium, Maye will have the opportunity to meet the seven-time Super Bowl champion when he is inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame on June 12.