Patriots' Drake Maye has the tools to have better rookie season than Mac Jones

The Patriots are unsurprisingly projected to be at or near the bottom of the NFL in 2024. Their offseason was OK (B-), but nothing special. The sole addition that raised the grade almost a point was drafting Drake Maye. However, the team's "brain trust" is now keeping Maye in the third position among its quarterbacks. Go figure.

Whoever is making that decision is out to lunch. Have your sandwich, and get with the program. You're messing up big time. Maye is your best chance to win. And if you think that's being too optimistic, think again.

In 2021, rookie Mac Jones, now traded for a huge haul, a monstrous sixth-round pick, got the lackluster Patriots to a playoff game. Admittedly, Jones had a real left tackle in Trent Brown. Unfortunately, the bumbling 2024 Patriots have no left tackles at all.

In any event, they have a far better potential quarterback than Jones in Drake Maye. He'd better be after new personnel head Eliot Wolf invested the third pick overall in the 2024 draft in him. Here's why if Maye starts, he can do equally well if not better than Jones did in 2021.

Drake Maye has far better tools than Mac Jones

Maye has lots of attributes going for him that Mac didn't. First, he appears to be a superbly conditioned athlete. Jones was neither superbly conditioned nor a top athlete in 2021. Unfortunately, thanks to personnel head Eliot Wolf's neglect, Maye has to perform with a makeshift left tackle. It's a shame, but it is what it is. It's a darn good thing he's a top athlete.

Maye's conditioning translates this way. He's a top scrambler, but that's not all. He's also a good runner. Jones was neither in 2021. That Maye attribute will help if Offensive Coordinator Alex Van Pelt can fashion an offense that can compensate for that unconscionable lack of a left tackle. Maye will have to run for it, but thankfully, he can do just that with aplomb. It's a possible saving grace.

Let's assume that at some point, the myopic Patriots' "brain trust" comes to its senses and decides Maye, not $8M journeyman backup Jacoby Brissett, gives the team the best chance to win. The rookie's outstanding escapability in the pocket will be a difference-maker.

Drake Maye's other skills can make the Patriots' day

In addition to that all-important escapability (especially in light of the offensive line's deficiencies), Maye can do other things that Jones couldn't. First, he can throw on the run, such as his recent no-look pass in the OTAs, as noted by sports.yahoo.com from X (see below). He also threw a left-handed TD pass at UNC!

Maye is versatile, adaptive, and will do whatever it takes to get points on the board, something the Patriots couldn't do the past two seasons. While too much attention has been paid to silliness like his supposed "footwork" issues, the greater point is Maye's ability to improvise and do whatever is necessary to win.

These are some points why Drake Maye has lots more potential to get the Patriots team to a playoff berth than the successful Mac Jones did in 2021. He has much more to offer, especially considering the offense's deficiencies.

The receiving corps has to function as a solid NFL unit, and the offensive line has to do a decent job blocking for him. If so, there is no reason why the Pats, with their solid defense and Drake Maye at QB, can't contend for a playoff berth as they did in 2021. Give the young man a chance. You never know.

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