At least through the first season-plus of Patriots quarterback Drake Maye‘s stellar rise on the NFL scene, there hasn’t been much that he’s done to offend the sensibilities of the league, its players and its observers/commenters. One of the running jokes, in fact, around the Patriots has been that Maye is so mild-mannered that his nickname is Drake “Drake Maye” Maye.
But success engenders attention, and attention engenders opinions. And as more is being said about Maye, it’s inevitable that there will be negative opinions that emerge. He had his odd swipes taken from Stephen A. Smith and Cam Newton, of course, and apparently Maye is “He Who Shall Not Be Named” at alma mater North Carolina, as long as the ever-petty Bill Belichick is there.
Going into Monday night’s game against the Giants, a new bit of criticism has been leveled against Maye, and it is from one player he is likely to see frequently once the game gets rolling: Giants star pass-rusher Brian Burns, who is No. 2 in the NFL in sacks at 13.
Drake Maye ‘Too Poised’
Burns’ thoughts on Maye could be characterized as a backhanded compliment. But ahead of the Giants-Patriots matchup, Burns was asked for his thoughts on Maye.
“He’s talented, talented arm. I’m not really too sure yet about how quick he is to process everything, but I do feel like he makes the right plays at the right time,” Burns said. “He does seem a bit poised, maybe a little bit too poised in the pocket, but just overall he’s been showing his talent for sure.”
Patriots’ Drake Maye Has Blind Spots
The notion of a quarterback being “too poised” warranted a follow-up question for Burns, and he got one along the lines of, “Huh?”
Explained Burns: “Just getting to him, getting in his blind spots, like his backside. I feel like at times he’s so caught up in making the right play or getting so caught up in his routes downfield, he just forgets about somewhat of who’s rushing him, if that makes sense.
“What I mean about poised, it could be a bad thing, could be a good thing. But what I mean by poised is that he takes his time and he makes the right reads, he tries to make the right play. It can also bite you in the butt at a certain amount of times if you’ve got edge rushers coming and you’re not really too cognizant of where they are.”
GettyBrian Burns #0 of the New York Giants says Drake Maye of the Patriots is “too poised.”
Patriots Have Limited Sacks
Maye leads all passers this season in yardage (3,130) and completion percentage (71.0%). He is No. 2 in the league in quarterback rating, at 110.7, trailing only Matthew Stafford. Burns is more focused, though, on the fact that Maye has a sack percentage of 9.44%, which is seventh in the NFL. That’s especially worrisome given the Patriots’ banged-up offensive line.
But, too poised? Maye was not sure what to make of that.
“Shoot, I’m not 100% what that really means,” Maye said. “I try to keep my eyes down the field with feeling pressure. I think that’s part of playing the position, so just trying to make the right play.”
And Maye has gotten better about dealing with pressure. After taking 16 sacks in three games from Weeks 7-9, he has had just one per game for each of the last three weeks. He should probably keep his poise where it is.
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