Why the Patriot Receivers are Catching Everything

[Pats2000]

I started thinking about why the Patriots receivers were pretty much catching everything thrown their way. Looking at the film breakdown of Maye and the different plays and the throws that he's been making, I feel like Maye's ball is one of the most catchable balls in the NFL. It's pretty much always on target, it always has just the right touch for the situation, and the right velocity.

I've watched so many throws, especially long balls, where the ball just arcs perfectly over the defender and then drops right in the bucket. It almost just takes a nose dive straight down in a lot of cases and he fits it in there right where it needs to be. Obviously the receivers have great hands, but the ball is so well-placed and so catchable that I think Maye is vastly contributing to how well his receivers are playing in that respect.

He also seems to be able to diagnose defenses really well for someone who is just barely played a full NFL season. He's throwing with anticipation, he's finding the open receiver, and he's looking off coverages really well. His pocket presence is different than Brady's, but it's still really good. I don't understand how this kid is this good, this fast. Hats off to JMD and Vrabel.

Edit: One last thought, the game never looks too big for him. He's always calm, he just seems to forget the last play and go out there and make the next play. And the game never seems too fast for him either. You can't teach that, I don't want to compare him to Brady, but he's the last good quarterback that we had. And I don't think he's going to be the next GOAT, but we definitely got someone really special.

 

[dliverey44]

What I find super exciting is that he is already this good while there is still room to improve.

He has a tendency to hold the ball too long resulting in sacks, he has missed easy throws and turned it into a successful scramble. These are small nitpicks and he will improve on these with experience.

You are right about his catchable ball. Nate Burleson commented on that on one of the shows he is on.

The future is definitely bright.

 

[SVN]

Personally i think it also helps troy brown is no longer coaching the WRs

 

[Pape]

I started thinking about why the Patriots receivers were pretty much catching everything thrown their way. Looking at the film breakdown of Maye and the different plays and the throws that he's been making, I feel like Maye's ball is one of the most catchable balls in the NFL. It's pretty much always on target, it always has just the right touch for the situation, and the right velocity.

I've watched so many throws, especially long balls, where the ball just arcs perfectly over the defender and then drops right in the bucket. It almost just takes a nose dive straight down in a lot of cases and he fits it in there right where it needs to be. Obviously the receivers have great hands, but the ball is so well-placed and so catchable that I think Maye is vastly contributing to how well his receivers are playing in that respect.

He also seems to be able to diagnose defenses really well for someone who is just barely played a full NFL season. He's throwing with anticipation, he's finding the open receiver, and he's looking off coverages really well. His pocket presence is different than Brady's, but it's still really good. I don't understand how this kid is this good, this fast. Hats off to JMD and Vrabel.

Edit: One last thought, the game never looks too big for him. He's always calm, he just seems to forget the last play and go out there and make the next play. And the game never seems too fast for him either. You can't teach that, I don't want to compare him to Brady, but he's the last good quarterback that we had. And I don't think he's going to be the next GOAT, but we definitely got someone really special.

why? this video breaks it down...

 

[SammyBlueCat]

Cat like quickness on display

 

[n1997y]

I started thinking about why the Patriots receivers were pretty much catching everything thrown their way. Looking at the film breakdown of Maye and the different plays and the throws that he's been making, I feel like Maye's ball is one of the most catchable balls in the NFL. It's pretty much always on target, it always has just the right touch for the situation, and the right velocity.

I've watched so many throws, especially long balls, where the ball just arcs perfectly over the defender and then drops right in the bucket. It almost just takes a nose dive straight down in a lot of cases and he fits it in there right where it needs to be. Obviously the receivers have great hands, but the ball is so well-placed and so catchable that I think Maye is vastly contributing to how well his receivers are playing in that respect.

He also seems to be able to diagnose defenses really well for someone who is just barely played a full NFL season. He's throwing with anticipation, he's finding the open receiver, and he's looking off coverages really well. His pocket presence is different than Brady's, but it's still really good. I don't understand how this kid is this good, this fast. Hats off to JMD and Vrabel.

Edit: One last thought, the game never looks too big for him. He's always calm, he just seems to forget the last play and go out there and make the next play. And the game never seems too fast for him either. You can't teach that, I don't want to compare him to Brady, but he's the last good quarterback that we had. And I don't think he's going to be the next GOAT, but we definitely got someone really special.

The game isn’t too big for him because he is so familiar with it. It’s his natural environment. Drake has played barely one full NFL season, but he’s been groomed for this since childhood.

His dad started teaching him football in the driveway when he was a kid. His dad is a former NFL QB, spent a year on the Bucs PS.

His older brother’s best friend was drafted as QB by the Steelers when Drake was a high school freshman. Mason Rudolph had been like extended family because his father and Drake’s dad were college roommates who remained close. They’d played everything together for years. Have to wonder how much Drake’s dad influenced Mason’s development too.

Drake’s high school football team was coached by an NFL QB, now NFL QB Coach. Josh McCown’s son was on the team so the Philadelphia Eagles, his team at the time, let him fly down to North Carolina on off days to coach the high school team as a volunteer assistant coach. It’s noteworthy that the Minnesota Vikings wanted to trade draft picks with the Patriots to get Maye. McCown is the Vikings QB coach.

Seems like Drake started learning how to be an NFL QB long before he made it onto an NFL roster.

As far as his ball being catchable, Nate Burleson said that same thing. It’s starting at 13:50 in this segment.

 

[TinhWoodhead]

even rham caught a long ball in the last game but out of bound

 

[denverpatsfan]

He's no Steve Grogan but getting better every game....

 

[Betterthanmost]

I read the opening post and can’t avoid comparing it to Mac Jones. His panicky and lack of composure after sacks gave me second hand PTSD.

 

[Brotherblues]

On some throws Maye leaves his arm like a basketball 3-point shooter after the shot. He has a strong basketball background, I wonder if that has helped gauging arching trayectory and dropping his passes in a bucket.

It seems to make some of the deeper passes easier to catch.