Former New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels had a lofty potential comparison for rookie quarterback Drake Maye.
The North Carolina product was selected by the Patriots third overall in the 2024 NFL draft. Unlike the two quarterbacks drafted ahead of him, Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels, Maye wasn’t given an opportunity to start right out of the gates.
The team instead went with veteran Jacoby Brissett and chose to take their time developing Maye behind the scenes. This could be a smart move with the offensive line struggles and the Patriots having one of the hardest schedules in the NFL.
McDaniels appeared on Julian Edelman’s “Games With Names” podcast and gave insight into what he believes Maye’s potential will be.
“Got great size, really athletic. I don’t know where he’ll fit in the whole like, the style he’ll play with. I’m interested to see how that develops,” McDaniels said. “Is he going to be a little bit of a runner like Josh Allen was in Buffalo? Guys like that that have those kinds of attributes, you can use them to run the football too. Or, if he is just a pocket passer, a big tall strong guy in the pocket. But the games I’ve seen, he’s done a good job in.”
Josh McDaniel on Drake Maye.@gameswithnames pic.twitter.com/R1JUsm2BEf
— ZeeBee (@BellinoZee) September 7, 2024
The fact that Maye drew a comparison to Allen from a great offensive mind like McDaniels’ is certainly a positive sign. Time will tell what Maye’s ceiling will end up being.
Nevertheless, it’s clear that the Patriots, and others around the league, see the potential.
