Drake Maye Will Benefit From Sitting Behind Jacoby Brissett, Patriots WR Says

Losing out on the starting quarterback job this season might be a blessing for Drake Maye ... 'cause Patriots wideout K.J. Osborn tells TMZ Sports he thinks being a backup will only benefit the rookie signal-caller.

Of course, there were many in Foxborough who thought differently ... with a bunch of fans believing Maye had shown enough in the preseason to start under center ahead of veteran Jacoby Brissett .

But when we spoke to Osborn following New England's upset win over Cincinnati, he made it clear he believes Maye's career in the long run will be positively impacted by sitting and learning.

"Coming into this league," the 27-year-old veteran receiver said, "there's just so much to know. The gameplay is so fast, especially at that quarterback position."

Osborn told us that in addition to learning with his eyes, Maye's going to glean a lot from Brissett in meeting rooms too -- telling us Jacoby's been great at passing along any notes he can.

Seems it's all working out so far for New England -- at least through one week ... as the Pats are 1-0 heading into a matchup with the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.

Nonetheless, Osborn says they're still taking things day by day and not getting too far ahead themselves, telling us, "We enjoyed that win, went back and watched the film, and man, it's onto the next one."