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You can always tell when the game slows down for a younger player. Their movements become more controlled, processing becomes quicker and everything just moves in slow motion. Neo becoming The One in The Matrix, Midorya realizing the full extent of his powers in My Hero Academia, both are examples of when you could tell that the game really slowed down for them.

You can now add New England Patriots' QB Drake Maye into that conversation. The New England Patriots are 4-2 and sit at the top of the AFC East, and Maye's exponential growth from last season to this one is the biggest reason why. You can look for any metric and Maye is at or near the top of the list: seventh in EPA per play, eighth in Passing Success Rate, fifth in passing yards and tied for ninth in passing touchdowns. All of this in a year where the offense hasn't fully realized its potential yet, with a sporadic run game and pass protection that has been up and down. Yet, Maye has this offense top 10 in EPA per play and en route to a playoff push. How he's been able to make the leap from promising to legitimately great this year has been really fun, and it all starts with slowing the game down.

The Patriots, despite not having an offense that's necessarily chock full of dynamic playmakers, is built to more maximize Maye's effectiveness as a downfield passer this year compared to 2024. With offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels at the helm, Maye's aggression throwing the ball deep has been unleashed. According to Next Gen Stats, Maye is tied for the third most completions of passes over 20 Air Yards this season and has a blistering +33.1% Completion Percentage Over Expected, second-highest in the NFL behind Sam Darnold. McDaniels is an old-school offensive designer; the Patriots play 12 personnel on 37.08% of their plays this season, sixth-highest in the NFL. When they get into heavy looks and throw the ball deep, Maye is more than capable of putting in the launch codes downfield. However, what makes him even more dangerous on these plays is the fact that his ball placement is pristine. PFF charts him with zero turnover-worthy plays on passes over 20 air yards. His ability to throw 40-yard handoffs is what separates him from the pack, and that growth has been evident this season.

Maye's downfield aggression is something that traveled with him from 2024, but I think his ball placement on those deep passes has trended upwards as well. Even on passes that were called back due to ghost OPI calls or passes just off the fingertips of WRs like Mack Hollins, Maye is putting them in the bucket, maximizing a wide receiver corps that doesn't necessarily have a dominant threat on the outside. WR Kayshon Boutte has been the Pats' best jump ball receiver this year, which is a testament to his growth but also Maye putting passes in the only spot that he could for his guy to go get. That's not just top tier quarterbacking, it's darn near MVP level.

Where Maye truly has entered the matrix is when it comes to avoiding pressure and what he does in the face of it. I always thought he was better against pressure than most gave him credit for, but without any supporting cast in 2024, his pressure numbers were abysmal: per Sumer Sports, his EPA per dropback last year under pressure was -0.22, 21st in the NFL. Through six games this year, Maye has completely flipped his fortunes: his 0.09 EPA per play under pressure is now up at fifth in the entire league. 

Where I think he's improved the most under pressure is his understanding of what works and what doesn't for him, his answers against pressure. QBs can beat pressure with any combination of their arm, legs or mind. Patrick Mahomes this year has chosen to beat pressure with his legs, to the tune of leading the Kansas City Chiefs in rushing yards. Where Maye is winning is through his arm and legs, creating space within the pocket while keeping his eyes downfield and generating explosive passes. Maye is second in the NFL in passing touchdowns under pressure, and a large part of that is because of his ability to keep his eyes downfield and make movements to create space for himself to get passes off. Maye can scramble to get first downs, but what I've been the most impressed with is the ability to gash defenses downfield under pressure.

With the deep ball and accuracy downfield to strike fear into opponents and the pocket movement to maximize his abilities, he's raised the floor and ceiling of the Pats offense. In their win against the New Orleans Saints, all three of Maye's touchdown passes came under pressure, on plays where he keeps his eyes up and throws strikes downfield. I love Maye's ability to keep the ball tight to his body when moving up in the pocket, and then the off platform throw to move the chains on 3rd down is big boy quarterbacking. This is what some of the best in the business do, and Maye is playing at that level to start the season.

However, it's not only the way the game has slowed down for Maye. He's getting through his progressions much quicker, and his ability to keep the offense on schedule without a run game to really speak of has been incredibly impressive. He's trimmed most of the fat off of his footwork and has been able to make a lot of plays just based on how quick he's getting through progressions.

Through the first six games of the season, it's safe to say that Maye has arrived as an upper echelon NFL QB. Maye has the Patriots dreaming of the playoffs for the first time in four years. His growth as a passer, while still maximizing the strengths he came in with has helped New England become a top passing offense in the NFL. How high Maye can get remains to be seen, but someone so young shouldn't be this good, and it's making for a fun watch.