Drake Maye was announced as the Patriots starting quarterback this week and on Thursday his offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt spoke to how Maye has developed behind the scenes and why the rookie is ready to take over at quarterback.
Van Pelt said the decision was both spurred by Maye's progress as well as the offense's passing struggles through the first four games. New England's attack ranks 31st in both yards and points, 30th in DVOA and 28th in EPA per play.
"Offensively, we're not where we want to be from a production standpoint, especially in the pass game," admitted Van Pelt. "I think that that leads to some of that decision, and also the fact that to see his growth and development over those weeks of practice and what he's put on on the practice field, I think two of those combined.
"You know, we're close. We're a couple plays away from being 3-2 and feeling a lot better about where we are right now. But the reality of it is, we're not, we're 1-4, and, you know, at this point we need to find something to get us a chance to win on Sunday."
Maye turned plenty of heads this preseason. Whether it was his live arm, his ability to make off-platform throws or his opportunistic athleticism, the kid has all the tools in the tool box. Add in his noticeable improvement during training camp and even the coach staff admitted that Maye was already making his case in late August.
That progress continued into the regular season, as Maye was relegated to a back-up role, taking over the scout team offense while still getting his opportunities with the first team offense.
"He's like a sponge," said Van Pelt. "He stands back there and watches everything. He's very involved in the meetings, very vocal in the meetings as well. His knowledge has grown since we've had him, since the draft. He's more prepared now than he ever has been to handle the challenges that will be presented on Sunday. And again, his play on the field, to watch the balls he throws out there, the accuracy, the down-the-field stuff that he's been able to show on the practice field, I think it gives us a chance to go win on Sunday."
Maye is in for a tough matchup against Houston's defense. They rank third in DVOA and first in pressure rate (42.0%) according to Next Gen Stats. Edge rushers Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter lead the way with 52 combined pressures. Even if the duo only has four sacks combined, they're a nightmare for opposing blockers and consistently find ways to be disruptive in the passing game.
"That's a strong, strong defense," observed Van Pelt. "They do a great job with their scheme as well with their players. [Anderson and Hunter] are very talented edge rushers. [We've] got to make sure we handle those edges.
"You know, somewhat basic in first and second down, but oh my gosh, when you get to third down, they're coming from everywhere. They have every conceivable package of structures of defense, and they bring all their guys. So big challenge for us from a protection standpoint."
Despite the challenge that Houston's defense presents, Van Pelt remained confident in what Maye will bring to the game. There's never a perfect starting point for an NFL career. Every team is good, and at some point you just have to go for it.
"I'm excited to see Drake play," said Van Pelt. "It's his time. You know, I think he's prepared. He's done a great job on the practice field getting ready for this moment."
Defensive Coaches Praise Mapu
Marte Mapu was our One Big Thing from the Dolphins loss, as the second-year defender jumped right into the lineup off of IR and played an ironman role.
On Thursday, the team's defensive coaches were effusive in their praise of Mapu for staying on point with the defense throughout his injury time.
"I love what Marte does for us at the position, which, obviously, he plays in the box some, but he just operates as a safety, and he can move around the defense," said his position coach Brian Belichick. "He can play at other positions, but I like when he's out there on the field at safety. And I'm confident in him playing all over the field, and that's the uniqueness and specialness of a player like that, who can be so versatile in our defense, and nothing's better than that for us."
Injuries during training camp can have a lot of different results. Sometimes injured players completely disappear. Other times they stretch with the team but spend the rest of practice doing conditioning drills on the lower field.
Mapu was more unique, as he was a constant at practice, watching from behind the defense, signaling all the calls and continuing to focus on the field like he was out there. That attention paid off with Mapu being able to quickly jump back into the fray despite what was essentially a two-month break from playing football.
"I didn't lose confidence in him coming back and being able to [play so much], because while he was on IR, he was keeping up with everything, and staying on top of it, and very engaged and locked in and taking mental reps as best as he could, which is the best you can do when you're in that position," continued Belichick. "And he was very diligent about doing it and keeping up with the game plans and stuff and so he was rolling and ready to go."
Even outside linebackers coach Drew Wilkins has been impressed by Mapu.
"He's a guy that could be in a lot of different rooms and be effective," said Wilkins. "He's got great size, great speed, but the thing I would say that probably impressed everybody in the building is how in the first game really coming back, how he communicated, how he was really able to operate and do a lot of different things for us. Like, you would take 11 guys like that on the team, and we have a lot of guys like that on our team that communicate, work well together and really play a tough, physical brand of football. He's one of those guys, for sure, different though."
Inside linebackers coach Dont'a Hightower had plenty of versatility himself while he was with the Patriots. Known as one of the "adjusters," Hightower was equally comfortable on the edge or off the ball, and able to impact the game in a number of different ways. That's the path that young Mapu is on now and Hightower has had a hand in developing him in Year 2.
"He was one of the guys who always had his iPad, always asked some questions," said Hightower. "I sat down and met with him in the spring, and gave him my number and he'd shoot me text messages asking questions about coverages or fronts and stuff. So when you got a guy like that who's dedicated and wants to win, but moreso wants to progress and wants to get better, that's always great."
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