Two Sundays ago in New Orleans, as Drake Maye was dissecting the Saints’ defense, a mic’d up Harold Landry III marveled at how the New England Patriots quarterback appeared to be in a “flow state.”
“He has ultra instinct going full blast right now,” linebacker Christian Elliss added.
That “flow state” is producing incredible results: Over his last four games (all Patriots wins), Maye has completed a ridiculous 78.1 percent of his passes for 959 yards with seven touchdown passes, zero interceptions and a 132.6 passer rating. He already has four games this season with a least 200 passing yards, a 135 passer rating and two passing touchdowns — tying a franchise record set by Tom Brady during his MVP season in 2007.
Long story short: Maye is balling, and former Patriots quarterback Brian Hoyer can see it from a mile away. On the latest episode of The Quick Snap Podcast with ex-Patriots center David Andrews, Hoyer detailed the signs that reveal how Maye is playing on a different level.
“What I know from having played the position, especially in this offense, Drake is … it’s almost like he’s playing in a flow-like state. Like, ‘I’m just going to see and read and react,'” Hoyer said. “That’s what you want to do as a quarterback. You don’t want to predetermine things.”
Hoyer pointed to the read Maye made last Sunday on his 39-yard touchdown strike to Kayshon Boutte, who lined up as the weakside receiver and burned two Tennessee Titans defenders before making a fingertip grab in the end zone.
“Immediately on the snap, Drake’s eyes are on the weak safety — which, in (a) 3×1 (formation), that’s where you want to look. As soon as he sees (the safety) settle and push to the No. 2 or No. 3, he’s like, ‘I have it. I’m not bypassing this. I’m gonna throw it.’
“That tells me that he is seeing things so clearly and he understands the ‘why’ to every single play.”
Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels deserves credit for having Maye prepared to make the right reads. But it sounds like the second-year QB already has great command of McDaniels’ offense, to the point where he can make split-second decisions and isn’t afraid to take risks.
Maye also trusts his pass-catchers to an impressive degree: Seven different Patriots caught multiple passes in the Patriots’ 31-13 rout of the Titans, and eight different skill players have at least 10 receptions this season.
For Andrews, that even ball distribution is another sign that Maye is seeing the game at a high level.
“One thing I love is the dispersion of the ball to different guys,” Andrews said. “… I always loved when we played games like that and the (completion numbers) were like, ‘Five, five, three, two, four, four,’ because to me, especially at Drake’s point in his career, it shows he’s comfortable in the offense.
“He’s not trying to get the ball to one guy. He’s making the right reads.”
Maye has always had exceptional physical traits, but his weakness as a rookie was making poor decisions that led to turnovers. He’s made a drastic improvement in that latter category this season, however, to the point where the game is already slowing down for him at just 23 years old.
More from Hoyer, Andrews and special guest Rob Ninkovich on a new episode of The Quick Snap:
- Breaking down the Patriots’ win over the Titans.
- Ninkovich on the Patriots defense’s slow starts.
- Is Ninkovich all-in on this Patriots team?
- Revisiting Tom Brady’s infamous 2016 return vs. the Browns.
- Previewing the Patriots-Browns Week 8 matchup.
