The New England Patriots have come to the end of their minicamp portion and will now enter their summer break.
Head coach Jerod Mayo recently spent some time with the New England media to chat about the performance of his rookie quarterback in Drake Maye.
According to insider Ben Volin, Mayo noted that Maye has done a great job of “keeping his nose up.”
In other words, he has been able to shrug off a bad play in an effort to make a good one on the next play.
Final day of Patriots minicamp before summer break.
Jerod Mayo says Drake Maye has done a good job this spring of “keeping his nose up,” ie shaking off a bad play and moving onto the next one pic.twitter.com/pcabijhBi1
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) June 12, 2024
Rough plays are to be expected, but it is good that Maye has shown some fight and improvement.
That is exactly what this Patriots season will be judged upon.
Can Maye prove that he is the franchise guy or not?
New England doesn’t need to win 12 games and make a deep playoff run, but Maye needs to show strides of growth.
The former ACC Player of the Year was selected with the No. 3 overall pick in April’s NFL Draft, so it is clear that the team believes he can be special.
What can also work to his advantage is the leadership of veteran Jacoby Brissett, who is back in New England after multiple stops elsewhere.
A former third-round pick of the Pats back in 2016, Brissett will be able to show Maye the ropes.
Teams like the Minnesota Vikings and Atlanta Falcons are taking the same route by bringing in a veteran signal-caller to help guide a younger, more inexperienced quarterback.
All Patriots fans need to do is focus on Maye’s growth.
That will decide whether 2024 is a success or a failure.
