The Patriots seem to be a vastly improved team on paper compared to 2024, but there's little doubt that to reach that next level, their quarterback will need to build on his performance last season. Drake Maye started and finished ten games last year (played in three others to a lesser extent), and passed for 15 touchdowns to ten interceptions.
On the surface, admittedly, that's pretty middling, but when keeping in mind his rookie status, poor weapons, and former OC Alex Van Pelt's inability to put together a functioning game plan, Maye looked sound.
I mentioned the additions made to the team vastly improved the roster on paper, but what exactly did those additions look like? Well, the offensive line was completely rebuilt with a pair of new tackles, a new left guard, and a new center. Rookies Will Campbell and Jared Wilson seem poised to be the LT-LG combination, and veteran Morgan Moses is a more than solid option on the right side.
As far as pass catchers go, Stefon Diggs was the marquee addition, while Mack Hollins was also brought in. Kyle Williams was selected in the third round, and UDFA Efton Chism III impressed in the preseason. Maybe more important than anything was the return of OC Josh McDaniels, whose experience in the role should be a major upgrade over the aforementioned Van Pelt.
What will Drake Maye's production look like for the Patriots in 2025?
Given the additions to the offense and coaching staff, there's little reason not to expect a sophomore jump for the former Tarheel. For one, barring any injuries, he'll have 17 games to start in and play. In games Maye started and finished last year, he averaged 223.1 yards per game. If we account for a 5% increase in passing yards, we hover around 235 yards a game, or just shy of 4,000 yards for the season.
Maye will have a better line in front of him, and while we can therefore expect more passing upside, we can also expect less scrambling. Maye was second among all quarterbacks in yards per rush last year at 7.8. He carried the ball 54 times compared to first-place Spencer Rattler's 18 times. In all, he had 421 yards for the year.
If he recorded the same yards per game on the ground this season, he'd hit 550 yards for the year, a feat that seems reasonable. That 550-yard mark would have set him fifth among QBs last season, one spot above Josh Allen. Last season, Maye was tenth.
As far as touchdowns go, I wouldn't expect an overly ridiculous figure. We've all seen the Maye-truthers on Instagram who believe he'll throw for 40 touchdowns, but that, simply put, isn't realistic. After 15 pass touchdowns last year, 25 doesn't seem like an unreasonable number to consider. Rush for another five, and he would hit a total of 30.
Regarding the not-so-fun stats, Maye had ten interceptions to go along with his 15 passing touchdowns last year, and I wouldn't expect any less gunslinging this year. An interception every game is far too many, but one every two seems too few. I'd wager about 13 interceptions sounds right for the young star.
Overall, I expect the former No. 3 pick to take a significant step forward compared to last season. It might be a bit steep to suggest he'll pass for 4,000+ yards, but his averages last season don't leave it out of the question. Adding another 500 or so yards on the ground also seems reasonable, and adding five rushing TDs to his 25 in the air seems reasonable as well.
His gunslinger nature will lend itself to turnovers, but let's hope the 13 interceptions I predicted don't come at costly times. All in all, a stat line of roughly 4,500 total yards, 30 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions seems ambitious but not ridiculous for Maye to uphold.