Former MVP just threw more pressure on Drake Maye ahead of his biggest career game

The biggest game in maybe five years is on tap in Foxborough as the New England Patriots take on the Buffalo Bills in a game that may decide the AFC East Title. It's a battle of two of the NFL's top quarterbacks, 2024's MVP, the incredible Josh Allen, vs. a top contender for the 2025 MVP award, Patriots' second-year player, Drake Maye.

Both have been noted by former NFL MVP Matt Ryan as among the three quarterbacks who are playing the best in the NFL right now.

To say it's a dream matchup in Week 15 would be a gross understatement. Since the departure of Tom Brady, have ruled the AFC East with ease, led by their Superman quarterback, Allen. He's a dominant quarterback among the dominant. Yet now, there's a new sheriff in Foxborough, and the chairs in the AFC East have been rearranged.

The Patriots wisely used the third pick overall in the 2024 draft to select Maye, and the 23-year-old has not disappointed one iota. Maye had a terrific rookie year with a worst-in-the-NFL accompanying cast around him.

No matter, he still threw for a 66 percent completion percentage with 15 touchdowns and ten interceptions, with zero first-team practice snaps at all until Week 4. That equaled not just a good, but a superb rookie season and a Pro Bowl berth to boot.

The Buffalo Week 15 game is a litmus test for Drake Maye and the Patriots

The Patriots and Drake Maye went into Buffalo in October and beat the Bills 23-20. Beating the Allen-led Bills is a feat anytime, but beating them in Orchard Park is a horse of a different color. It was an immense victory.

Now, on December 14, in a game that will decide the AFC East title if the Patriots win, two of the top three current quarterbacks cited by former NFL MVP Matt Ryan will square off for big table stakes.

Ryan thinks it's Allen who can "put the team on his back in the playoffs" and carry them to a Super Bowl. It's hard to argue that Allen is so capable.

Yet, young Drake Maye can take a major step toward doing just that by beating the Bills in Foxborough on December 14. You count out the young Patriots' gunslinger, Maye, at your peril, no matter who the opposition is.

The Patriots have Drake Maye, and he's as good as it gets in the NFL

Matt Ryan may have given a nod to Josh Allen, but don't be fooled. Drake Maye has all the attributes necessary to take down Allen and the Bills, and swipe Allen's MVP in the process for 2025. The young Patriots quarterback is a leader in more ways than one.

Maye not only has assumed the leadership role of his offense and team, but he also leads the NFL in several critical categories as expected: completion percentage, yards passing, and quarterback rating. These aren't throw-away stats. They're real measurements of how good a quarterback is, and in these categories, no one in the NFL is better.

One thing Maye doesn't have is a complement equal to either Allen or Ryan's other top-three guy, Matthew Stafford. Mike Vrabel has performed alchemy in transforming a bottom-of-the-NFL roster into a competitor in one offseason, but don't confuse that with having a top-of-the-NFL squad. It isn't.

Yet, in such cases, it's the quarterback and leader who transcends the deficiencies and wins despite them. The unflappable Maye is the difference-maker. He's the NFL's most accurate passer and can run to daylight when he has to. The combination is lethal. When he has time and a real pocket, he'll find the open man and gash a defense for big yardage. If not, he'll take off and run for some.

Ryan got it wrong. The quarterback who can take his team on his back and lead it to the Super Bowl in the AFC is Drake Maye. Maye has already gone to Buffalo and beaten Allen and to Tampa and beaten Baker Mayfield. He's the NFL's MVP in-waiting, and he'll demonstrate that fact against the Bills on December 14.

After all, if you can beat the Bills in Buffalo, you can beat them at home, as well, and win the AFC East in the process.