INDIANAPOLIS — Drake Maye made a large leap from 12 months 1 to 12 months 2, growing swiftly into an MVP candidate on the best way to a Patriots Tremendous Bowl look.
Govt vp of Eliot Wolf smiled when requested Tuesday on the NFL Scouting Mix how happy he was with Maye’s development from 2024 to 2025.
“I imply, happy is an amazing understatement,” Wolf mentioned. “Drake made a ton of progress in a number of areas, not solely at first of the season, however all through the season. I believe individuals neglect that he’s 23 years previous, there’s been rather a lot on his shoulders, and there’ll proceed to be with the expectation that it has being a quarterback for the New England Patriots. However I’m simply actually enthusiastic about him, his toughness, his competitiveness. He’s at all times the identical man. There’s clearly areas on the sector that he’s going to enhance, and he’s going to work with Coach [Josh] McDaniels and Coach [Ashton] Grant and get these issues taken care of.”
Maye handled a shoulder damage through the Patriots’ playoff run and acknowledged getting a toradol shot in his throwing arm earlier than the 29-13 Tremendous Bowl LX loss to the Seahawks.
Wolf didn’t imagine Maye’s shoulder damage had an impression on his performance, nevertheless.
“I believe that’s most likely a query higher requested to him. I didn’t really feel that means,” Wolf mentioned. “I simply felt like we simply couldn’t get in a rhythm offensively.”
Wolf additionally appeared on The Ringer’s “The McShay Present” and was requested in regards to the Patriots’ course of in drafting Maye.
On the time, when the Patriots have been selecting third general, some native media chatter believed the staff was higher off build up the roster earlier than including a quarterback. There has not been a quarterback of Maye’s caliber since he was chosen within the 2024 NFL Draft.
“That was an enormous storyline in New England. After we had the third choose within the draft and it was, this staff can’t assist a franchise quarterback. You understand, take the sort out or the vast receiver and choose the quarterback subsequent yr, and I didn’t perceive that,” Wolf mentioned. “We have now some actual generational guys right here, we now have the chance to get Drake Maye. Versus ready a yr, and who wouldn’t it have been?”
Cam Ward, Jaxson Dart, Tyler Shough, Jalen Milroe, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders have been the highest quarterbacks chosen final spring. Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza is anticipated to be the highest choose this yr, whereas Alabama’s Ty Simpson additionally might go within the first spherical.
