Patriots Coach Jerod Mayo Reveals Drake Maye Status for Preseason Game vs. Panthers

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — With the New England Patriots preseason opener fast approaching, many are wondering whether Pats Nation will be getting their first in-game glimpse of rookie quarterback Drake Maye.

Though conventional wisdom inherently indicated that Maye would see at least a handful of snaps in the Pats’ preseason opener against the Carolina Panthers on Thursday night, head coach Jerod Mayo confirmed that Maye will taking his first snaps as a pro quarterback during said contest.

“Everybody healthy enough to play in a game will play,” Mayo told reporters prior to Tuesday’s practice. As for Maye, New England’s head coach was noncommittal when asked if the North Carolina product would start, or to provide an estimate for his potential playing time.

“We’re still having those conversations,” Mayo added. “We’ll see how we do today and how the guys present the following next couple of days. We’ll have a lot of guys play.”

Maye has been described by some draft analysts as an “ideal fit” within coordinator Alex Van Pelt’s offense. Perhaps best known for his elite arm strength, the 21-year-old also possesses the velocity and touch on the ball to make any throw required of him — including those into tight windows. Accordingly, he has been heralded as one of the best navigators of the entire field in this season’s Draft class. Maye is equally touted for his exceptional athleticism. When the play breaks down, he possesses the both agility and instinct to turn off-script options into big gains.

Still, Maye has spent much of his time on the Gillette Stadium practice fields working on his fundamentals. His reps have included play-action drop backs and lining up with his left foot in front while in the shotgun — an alignment which Van Pelt stresses to help the quarterback maintain rhythm. The technique marks a departure for Maye, who primarily operated out of the shotgun for North Carolina while leading with his right foot.

Thus far, Maye’s performance in team drills has been met with mixed reviews. He not only has tossed several would-be scoring strikes, but he also showcased the velocity, touch and placement of the ball which will eventually land him the starting job.

Although he has frequently flashed the arm strength and talent commensurate with being a top-5 NFL Draft pick, there have also been frequent struggles in connecting with his receivers.

In the final analysis, Maye still has some growing pains which will need to be addressed as training camp practices begin to wind down. Still, the rookie’s field vision and mechanics are showing enough improvement to warrant at least a fleeting look on Thursday night.

The Pats will conduct their final open practice of the week on Tuesday, before welcoming the Panthers to Gillette Stadium for a 7 p.m. kickoff on Thursday evening.