Former quarterback insists Patriots will regret drafting Drake Maye
Once the Patriots were the official holders of the third overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, there was a lot of conversation surrounding who they would select. The assumption, of course, was it would be a quarterback, given their positioning in the first round and their obvious need to replace Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe.
But which quarterback it would be remained a debate until the team was on the clock.
It was known that Caleb Williams would go first overall to the Bears, leaving Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye as the remaining top quarterbacks for the Commanders to pick next. Whoever they didn't choose would likely become the Patriots next quarterback, which is exactly what happened.
Washington chose Daniels, allowing the Patriots to take Maye, who they reportedly preferred. The selection was met with much praise, as the team got a top-3 quarterback of the class, with some believing he could have been a better choice than Daniels.
However, there were many skeptics, as well, and continue to be despite his evident strides through early offseason practices.
Former quarterback insists Patriots will regret drafting Drake Maye
The most recent former player attempting to paint Maye out to be a poor decision is Shaun King, an NFL quarterback whose career began with the Buccaneers in 1999.
Although he's not a well-known quarterback, he had a lot to say about the Patriots' decision to use their high draft pick on the former UNC player during a recent interview with Tyler Dunne of Go Long. He stated his belief that Maye is nothing more than a developmental quarterback and that the Patriots will regret taking him.
"I think the draft is where teams mess up. I’m telling you now, Drake Maye is not a first-round [pick]. He’s not. He’s a developmental quarterback. He comes from a great family. If given time to mature and grow into being a more confident, consistent player, he can be OK. But what did you bypass to take a developmental quarterback at three?"
It's an interesting take and not one that has been shared often by analysts before or after New England picked him in the draft. There were certainly concerns about his age and lack of experience compared to others in the class, but not much had been made about him being a developmental prospect.
King doubled down on his assessment of Maye when he spoke about the current decision to have Jacoby Brissett be the starter. He believes the rookie won't beat Brissett for the starting job this summer, which makes their pick look even worse.
"He’s not going to beat out Jacoby Brissett. And the way I look at draft value, if I’m drafting something in the top five...no offense to Jacoby Brissett...that can’t beat out Jacoby Brissett, then I’m over-drafting that player."
What the future holds for either quarterback is unknown, with training camp set to begin next month and preseason in August. Many questions will be answered during that time, so it's a bit premature for King to conclude anything about Maye at this point, especially suggesting that he won't be a good quarterback.
It feels like the latest attempt at creating controversy and hoping to go viral, which unfortunately worked yet again.