New England Patriots - NESN.com
A former New England Patriots mainstay celebrated the organization finding a new face of the franchise.
Drake Maye delivered in primetime, leading the Patriots to a 23-20 victory over the Buffalo Bills. Like many Patriots fans, Devin McCourty loved what he saw from the second-year quarterback.
The former Pro Bowl defensive back, who played his entire 13-year career in New England, applauded Maye on “The Rich Eisen Show.”
“It’s a beautiful thing when you can feel like in your locker room you have the guy that can lead you,” McCourty told guest host Tom Pelissero on Friday. “And I think, last Sunday night, when we watched Drake Maye and watched the New England Patriots, you saw a team that really believes they have the guy that can lead them to the promised land. That, at some point, can be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy in his career.”
The three-time Super Bowl champion recalled Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels raving to him about Maye before the season started. McCourty noted that the 23-year-old has looked more comfortable running New England’s offense throughout the first five weeks and has quickly established a rapport with wide receiver Stefon Diggs.
“He just had a big old smile on his face when he talked about Drake Maye,” McCourty said. “It wasn’t just the physical tools, but it was also the mental approach. When they got there, Drake wanted to learn everything about the offense from the foundation on up … He wanted to challenge himself to learn them, and he has.”
Maye still has quite a way to go from matching the legacy of McCourty’s former Patriots teammate, Tom Brady. But he’s starting to forge his own path, guiding New England to a 3-2 start with a 73.9 completion percentage and 107.8 quarterback rating.
Maye will lead the Patriots into a Week 6 matchup against the New Orleans Saints this Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
