Drake Maye has made a lot of difficult things look very easy while securing serious MVP consideration and leading his New England Patriots to a surprising Super Bowl appearance. The AFC championship game, against the Broncos in snow-covered Denver, was a bit of an exception as the second half conditions made moving the football a challenging proposition.
Thanks to the magic of microphones, we now know that the second-year quarterback made an honest admission during crunchtime of the Patriots' 10-7 win.
"It's hard," Maye told his offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels as they tried to warm up on the bench.
McDaniels then found the perfect message at the perfect time.
Drake Maye: "It's hard... Good God"
— Michael Rodnick (@MJRodnick) January 28, 2026
Josh McDaniels: "Look at me, it's gonna be hard, but look, this will be the most rewarding 6 1/2 minutes of our lives if we can get it done." 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
The vulnerability here... holy moly man.
🎥: @Patriots pic.twitter.com/CyoaTUQpti
"Look at me, it's going to be hard," McDaniels told Maye. "But look, this will be the most rewarding six and a half minutes of our lives if we can get it done."
It was the exact perspective Maye needed as he was able to successfully manage the final minutes of the game, calling his own number on a third-down run that ultimately allowed the Patriots to run out the clock and punch their ticket to Super Bowl LX.
McDaniels's little bit of inspiration may need a fact-check, though, as defeating the Seattle Seahawks to win it all may be slightly more rewarding than beating the Broncos. Maye, who has been nothing but calm, cool and collected as he rocketed to become one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, has also benefitted from an incredible coaching staff led by Mike Vrabel.
It's cool to see how matter-of-fact and measured this little bit of in-game inspiration was and how it reveals how a young signal-caller isn't afraid to speak freely about the moment.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Drake Maye Got the Perfect Coaching After Making Honest Admission in AFC Title Game.
