The New England Patriots enter the 2025 campaign with renewed optimism. The new coaching staff offers a far more palatable brand of 'Patriot Way' nostalgia than last year's regime. Mike Vrabel has won things. Josh McDaniels has won things. With established leadership, an upgraded offensive line, and more experience in the wide receiver room, it feels like the Patriots are moving in the right direction. Drake Maye is set up for success. But his early returns at OTAs are not what New England fans expected. Let the panic set in.
Maye threw four interceptions (on his first nine pass attempts) in the 11-on-11 portions of Tuesday's practice, including two picks from 2023 first-round pick (and subsequent underperformer) Christian Gonzalez. He recorded two interceptions in all of 16 starts last season, so Maye's INT rate seems... not ideal.
This has Patriots fans playing defense, attempting to explain away the inherent concerns of such a bad showing in a competitive practice environment.
Patriots fans react to brutal OTAs performance from Drake Maye
Is Maye a bust because of one bad practice? Of course not. Training camp hasn't even officially begun, he's learning a new scheme on the fly, and he's adjusting to new teammates. Stuff like this happens on the practice field. It's better to make mistakes now, when the reps don't count, than it is to commit those same errors in Week 1.
Others are in straight-up denial, refusing to engage with the painful facts of life as a Patriots fan in 2025. Tom Brady ain't walking through that door.
Here is the simple truth of the situation: Drake Maye threw 10 interceptions in 13 starts as a rookie. That is approximately .77 interceptions per game. He did that behind a worse offensive line and with less receiving help than he currently has ā not to mention the inherent competition spike of live NFL snaps against sincere opponents.
We really shouldn't put much stock into a few ugly numbers from an OTA session in mid-May. The Patriots are learning new schemes. Maye is trying new things and learning new teammates. There is truth to the idea that it's better to get these interceptions out of the way now. As Maye adjusts to the new faces around him and picks up on McDaniels' playbook, we should see fewer four-INT outings at practice. He also went 7-for-8 after the initial flurry of picks in Tuesday's practice, so he settled in eventually.
Maye was in the Pro Bowl as a rookie. That is not always a surefire indicator of future success ā just ask Mac Jones ā but Maye's classic blend of size, arm talent and mobility is easy to buy stock in. The Patriots need to keep improving the roster around him, but Vrabel led Ryan Tannehill to the No. 1 seed, so like... Maye is in a good position. It helps that McDaniels also worked hand-in-hand with Brady for so long. There are some valuable nuggets he can share with New England's new franchise cornerstone.