Drake Maye took the field at MetLife Stadium on Sunday afternoon and truly put on a show.Â
The New England Patriots quarterback finished the game going 19-of-21 for 256 yards with five touchdowns and a passer rating of 157.0 as well as a 90.5 completion percentage. And he even helped the team get enough of a lead that he got a nice break in the second half, with Joshua Dobbs taking over.
After the game, head coach Mike Vrabel took a moment to address the team in the locker room, and just as he’s done after every win, he handed out game balls to the players he felt deserved it most.
On Sunday, he handed out only one.
In his speech, he talked about “unfinished business,” speaking about the team’s ability to finish undefeated on the road.
âIt was a great team win and a lot of great efforts and everybody helped us, but Iâm glad we got No. 10 pulling trigger,â Vrabel stated before throwing the ball to Maye.
Mike Vrabel Says Drake Maye Got A ‘Special Game Ball’
When speaking with reporters on Monday, Vrabel was asked about his reason for giving Maye the game ball after the win and he didn’t hesitate with a long and thoughtful answer.
“Oh, it was just a pretty special performance,” he began. “It’s no secret how I feel about Drake. Again, that was a special game ball. That was one that I had constructed that had a lot of tape and paper, and I did arts and crafts on it. That was all our road wins on the ball that I had taped on there. So, he better bring it in here, and he better put it in the quarterback room because I put a lot of time and effort into that thing.
“Yeah, when we won three games in a row on the road, those three weeks, Stick had done a nice game ball that had those three games on there, and so then I went back and kind of added on all the other ones. I printed them off and put them on there. So, I’d said the night before, whoever was the player to gain, they got this special game ball. So, it’s kind of fitting that Drake had the performance that he had.
“There were a lot of other really good performances and a lot of guys that helped us contribute, but certainly the day that he had and what he’s done so far for us. So, we’ll need a lot of those efforts from him to continue. You guys know that, and I anticipate that to happen.”
Drake Maye Wasn’t The Only One To Get Something After Win Over Jets
GettyNew England Patriots QB Drake Maye and WR Stefon Diggs
Along with Maye’s impressive performance, veteran wide receiver Stefon Diggs also stepped up and helped the team remain undefeated on the road this season. And with that, he also picked up a nice little bonus, reaching 80 catches, unlocking an $500,000 incentive. Specifically, the catch came in the second quarter when Maye found Diggs in the end zone.
After the game, Maye was asked if he knew about Diggs’ incentive and whether that was the reason he got him the ball in that moment.
“No, no, but I’ll make sure to tell him he needs to buy me dinner or something, whatever,” Maye joked, before going on to add that the team is focused on the bigger picture instead of individual victories. “We’re not looking to hunt up incentives, we’re just looking to hunt up wins.”
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