All signs point to Patriots starting Drake Maye sooner rather than later

The New England Patriots used the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft on former North Carolina star quarterback Drake Maye for a reason. They believe he has the talent to be their franchise quarterback of the future. He may never live up to Tom Brady's massive legacy, mostly because no one ever will. However, if Maye is half as good as Drew Bledsoe was in his prime, then that is great!

What isn't great is the current state of the New England offense. The Patriots defense might be worth celebrating, but they are struggling to move the sticks with the seasoned veteran Jacoby Brissett at the helm of the operation. Brissett is beloved by everyone in the league, but he has only been a stop-gap starter in his career out of North Carolina State and Florida for a reason. He is too up and down.

With the Patriots licking their wounds after their Thursday Night Football defeat at the hands of the rival New York Jets, you have to wonder when New England head coach Jerod Mayo will go with Maye over Brissett. Given that Mayo's side of the ball is defense, it will only be once he trusts Maye to run the offense to perfection, or not carelessly turn the football over. He will lean on Alex Van Pelt in this.

New England is probably not going to be a playoff team, but they need to see what they have in Maye.

Drake Maye should be starting for New England Patriots sooner than later

This was always going to be the case. While Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix were always going to be Week 1 starters, it was going to take a minute before Maye gained the confidence of the New England staff to start games. This is because for as shaky at times as Brissett can be, he can be equally as steady. It is why he has had such tremendous staying power in this league as a backup.

Coming out of UNC, Maye projected to be Aaron Rodgers on the high-end. His arm talent is simply undeniable. As for his critics, there are concerns about his ability to thrive in winning time. North Carolina often underachieved in big moments when he was their quarterback. That may have more to do with the Tar Heels' utterly atrocious defense. There was nothing Maye could really do about that...

Ultimately, the Patriots are going to be cautious about this. The last thing they want is to force their best asset into action far before he is ready. Just look at all the NFL teams that have started their once-promising quarterbacks a bit too early. The Patriots may not have the talent to compete with most teams in the league, but meaningful starting experience could do Maye and the team good.

Give it a few more weeks, and then Maye should be out there starting for the Patriots for good.