QB Drake Maye announcement that he is leaving TAR Heels now another significant issue for team……
The New England Patriots reportedly came away impressed with Drake Maye after he met with the team at the NFL scouting combine.
According to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, one of the first things that the former North Carolina quarterback did when speaking with members of the team was to congratulate Jerod Mayo on being hired as the Patriots’ head coach.
He also recalled the names of individual coaches and assistants that he met with from other organizations when fielding questions from the media, showing the team that “he was dialed in and had done his homework.”
The Patriots own the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 draft and could select a quarterback due to incumbent signal-caller Mac Jones’ disappointing 2023 campaign. After coming off a 4-13 season with a new coaching staff following the departure of Bill Belichick, New England may prefer a fresh start under center as well.
In fact, Jeff Howe of The Athletic reported on Thursday that the Patriots are “heavily leaning” in the direction of selecting a quarterback with the No. 3 pick.
It remains to be seen if Maye will be available when New England is on the clock, as he’s widely regarded as the No. 2 quarterback prospect in the 2024 class behind USC’s Caleb Williams. In the latest mock draft by Bleacher Report’s NFL Scouting Department, he was selected with the second pick behind Williams.
“Overall, Maye is a supremely talented passer,” Klassen wrote. “He has the athleticism, arm talent and baseline processing skills to become a weapon at the next level. All he needs to do is cut out some of the ‘doing too much’ plays. Maye has the skill set to fit in any system and develop into a star.”
If he’s still on the board after the first two picks have been announced in April’s draft, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him playing in Foxborough next season given his strong impression at the combine.
