Getting the best out of second-year quarterback Drake Maye demands different things from returning New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. Things like moving pockets, zone-style running and heavy doses of the play-action pass. All of those things showed up in a big way during Week 3’s 21-14 defeat to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The shift was noticed by Patriots.com Staff Writer Evan Lazar, who believes “McDaniels has fully bought into outside zone/duo run sequencing to set up moving pockets for his athletic quarterback, with Maye producing 10 EPA+ plays on 11 moving pockets. The Patriots run-action rate (run+play-action) is also up to 56.3% in the last two games (35.3% in Week 1). Simply put, the offensive scheme has been terrific, and you can see where they can add even more to their base concepts.”
These concepts are a reaction to McDaniels never having had an athlete as physically dynamic as Maye at football’s most important position. The play-caller finding his comfort level with Maye is prompting a sea change from what the Pats have run for decades.
Josh McDaniels Changing Time-Tested Patriots Formula
McDaniels has been scaling back the traditional, pocket-based offense he developed around Tom Brady’s awesome talents for years. Now, the Patriots are running an offense more akin to the Mike Shanahan coaching tree.
It’s meant fewer traditional dropback passes and less power-based, gap blocking. The differences were obvious against the Steelers, when Taylor Kyles of Patriots on CLNS Media. observed “the Patriots leaned even more into moving pockets and outside zone.”
Those things suit Maye’s dual-threat skills and ability to ad-lib, but the new schemes haven’t been a total success, despite Lazar’s optimism. A note of caution comes from the Boston Herald’s Andrew Callahan, who notes “It was interesting to watch the Pats open with another Shanahan-esque plan, then pivot to more traditional McDaniels concepts mid-game.”
Callahan offered reasons for the disjointed mix, including “Not trusting your RBs to pass-protect (Henderson) and/or hold the ball (Stevenson/Gibson) will steer any OC into more quick game, but I’m curious to see where McDaniels goes from here. There’s a push-and-pull dynamic to the offense’s identity right now.”
Concerns about pass-protection when Maye is static in the pocket are valid. Especially in light of the struggles experienced in this area by rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson.
Yet, Callahan’s refrain about an erratic identity on offense is an equally pressing concern. Particularly for how it might hinder Maye’s development.
Drake Maye Still Seeking Balance in Year 2
He ran the offense smoothly at times, but Maye was also guilty of critical turnovers that warranted a warning from head coach Mike Vrabel. Those mistakes were brutal reminders Maye is a young playmaker still getting his bearings in the pros.
The third player taken in the 2024 NFL draft has a ways to go before he reaches the levels other quarterbacks achieved on McDaniels’ watch. Although there’s something ironic about a former McDaniels protege finding success away from New England by running a true version of the Shanahan offense with the San Francisco 49ers.
Ultimately, the Patriots are seeking a balance. Some symmetry between designs that free Maye’s full athletic range and the high-percentage, quarterback-friendly plays McDaniels and the Pats leaned on for decades.
Past success is why plays like these “legal rub routes” highlighted by Lazar, long part of the McDaniels’ blueprint, won’t be disappearing from the play sheet.
What’s more likely is plays like these become the football equivalents of palate cleansers for Maye. Quick ways to steal easy yards when all the zone-stretch runs, bootlegs and play-action passes don’t produce chunk plays every time.
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