The New England Patriots are showcasing their players as they approach Super Bowl LX, with Drake Maye taking center stage this week. Selected third overall in the 2024 NFL Draft from the University of North Carolina, Maye”s journey has been remarkable, especially with the team rejecting trade offers for his selection.
In his standout performance during Week 17, Maye played just 2.5 quarters yet completed an impressive 90.5% of his passes, amassing 256 yards along with five touchdown passes and no turnovers against the Jets. This game has been highlighted as one of his best, demonstrating his ability to perform under pressure.
Maye led the league with a QBR of 77.1 this season, a metric developed by ESPN to evaluate quarterback performance. He outperformed his peers in various advanced metrics, including expected points added and completion percentage over expected. Additionally, he ranked highly in overall completion percentage, passer rating, and yards per attempt.
Interestingly, Maye has a personal connection to this year”s Super Bowl. He attended the last championship held in San Francisco as a fan, where he admired Cam Newton, the quarterback for the Carolina Panthers. Reflecting on his journey, Maye described this upcoming game as a “full-circle” moment.
On the support from fans, Maye expressed his gratitude, stating, “It”s been awesome. I think it”s been one of the coolest things, probably, about this year is seeing the fan support. A local elementary school sent me — I think every kid wrote a letter to me and just was trying to pump me up before the AFC championship. It was pretty cool. … So, shoutout to all the kids and even the adults that are fans of us and fans of me. I think you guys are what make this league run, what make us want to work a little harder or try to execute a little more for this fan environment. I”m looking forward to seeing the fan environment at the Super Bowl. I know there”s going to be a lot of Pats fans out there. We always show out.”
