This Part Of Drake Maye’s Rookie ‘Evolution’ Impressing Patriots

The New England Patriots knew all about Drake Maye’s arm talent and ability to make plays with his legs.

But it was much more difficult to gauge whether the North Carolina product had the right intangibles to succeed at the most important position in football.

Well, the Patriots got some terrific insight into that prior to their 19-3 road win over the Chicago Bears this past Sunday. Maye showed his leadership skills when he asked offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt if he could address the team following a sloppy period in practice.

It was a wonderful sight for the Patriots to see and illustrated the growth from their 22-year-old rookie quarterback.

“I think this is part of the evolution of Drake, and this is something that we’ve discussed behind closed doors,” Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo told reporters Monday, per team-provided transcript. “I thought he did a good job, not only going out there and executing in practice, but also having those player-only meetings, and that’s what we need from him. We need that.”

The Patriots certainly have liked what they have seen from Maye thus far after making him the starter in Week 6. Maye’s superb athleticism and playmaking traits have overshadowed his rookie mistakes as he’s completed 64.7% of his passes for 954 yards with seven touchdowns and five interceptions. He’s also run for 9.3 yards per carry with a touchdown.

The leadership skills are an essential piece to becoming a franchise quarterback that Maye will need to harness with more experience. The Patriots like the makeup of Maye already, but he has room to grow, which only excites the organization even further to imagine what the finished product could be.

“Anytime you have a quarterback that is as level-headed, is a smart guy, a competitor, all those things and a leader, there’s no perfect time to do anything,” Mayo said. “So, we just said, ‘Hey, let’s just do it right now.’ He’s done an excellent job there, and I look forward to seeing that progress going forward.”