Some Patriots and NFL-related news on this Tuesday:
1) We all saw photos of Drake Maye and some additional New England Patriots players who put in some work last week, with fellow quarterback Josh Dobbs joining DeMario Douglas, Rhamondre Stevenson, Kendrick Bourne, Kyle Williams, Ja’Lynn Polk, and Hunter Henry among the players on hand during the session.
Bourne peeled back the curtain on those workouts, posting a nearly 20-minute video recently with footage from each of the three days the group practiced.
The veteran appears to be in good shape, but Williams ended up being the star of the footage shown. The rookie wideout is incredibly smooth with terrific hands, making several spectacular grabs, including a one-handed grab on a reception in the end zone.
Bourne was spotted giving him some coaching points, and the duo definitely seems to have a great relationship. Bourne did have a few drops during one practice, and with a crowded group heading into camp, hopefully, he got those out of the way.
Diggs also looked good during the workout, showing off some impressive speed and change of direction coming off his knee injury. Several reports have him possibly starting off training camp on the PUP list, but given what we’ve seen so far, it would be a surprise not to see him out there by the time the season kicks off.
Maye took the lead through each of the workouts and was the one who Bourne joked gave them a “free vacation,” praising the house they were all staying at. He looked incredibly focused as he and Dobbs threw pass after pass during what appeared to be a very spirited three days.
While Bourne and some of the other wideouts were all smiles, the second-year quarterback was all business and definitely looks focused heading into his sophomore season.
2) Meanwhile, when it comes to Maye, he’s flying under the radar heading into his second season. In the latest ESPN 2025 quarterback rankings, Maye found himself on the outside looking in from their Top 10, with the Patriots QB also not making their “Honorable Mention” list.
They had them ranked as follows:
10) Baker Mayfield, TB
9) Jalen Hurts, PHI
8) Jared Goff, DET
7) Justin Herbert, LAC
6) Matthew Stafford, LAR
5) Jayden Daniels, WA
4) Lamar Jackson, BAL
3) Joe Burrow, CIN
2) Josh Allen, BUF
1) Patrick Mahomes, KC
Honorable Mention:
C.J Stroud, HOU
Jordan Love, GB
Most of that list isn’t surprising, although Daniels coming in at #5 was definitely eye-opening. Daniels had a solid rookie season, but to put him ahead of some of those names feels a little too high.
Maye being left out, given the current group of quarterbacks in the NFL, isn’t entirely shocking. Mike Giardi of Boston Sports Journal appeared on NBC Sports Boston Monday night and provided his own rankings, with Giardi ranking Maye at #19, just ahead of Bo Nix.
Giardi’s top 10 had essentially the same names just in a slightly different order, with the list from 20-11 being the one that would be the better comparison.
He had that second group as follows:
20) Bo Nix, DEN
19) Drake Maye, NE
18) Trevor Lawrence, JAX
17) Tua Tagovailoa, MIA
16) Kyler Murray, AZ
15) Brock Purdy, SF
14) Geno Smith, LAS
13) Jordan Love, GB
12) Baker Mayfield, TB
11) C.J. Stroud
Those rankings feel fair. Last year was certainly a rough group on offense, and Maye didn’t have quite the same talent that he’ll have this year.
The coaching staff didn’t exactly do him any favors, and one thing that hasn’t gotten much discussion is just how bad the defense performed last year.
That group allowed 25 or more points in eight games last year, including two where they gave up 40+. All but one of those games happened after Maye took over the starting role in Week 6.
Maye has taken some heat this offseason for only coming away with one win as a starter last season, but given the fact that he was frequently playing from a significant deficit, there is definitely some context there.
Giardi gave his thoughts on the ranking, noting that he believes Maye should move up that list depending on how things go this season.
“All right, we’ll start with why he’s 19, because we just don’t have enough evidence,” explained Giardi. “I mean, he made it through 11 games last year from start to finish, right? Won one of those. He’s got two other wins to his credit, but those were Jacoby Brissett jobs that he got done after Drake Maye went down. There’s certainly been great flashes, but it’s a roller coaster, and you expect that with young players.”
“I don’t think they surrounded him as well as they needed to. I think maybe we could have a similar argument as we go into this year as well. But to me, there’s enough there to believe that he’s on the up and there’s a potential to climb up those rankings. And then when I look at someone like Bo Nix, I know Bo Nix, 29 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, threw for like 4,000 yards. That’s an awesome year. Bo Nix physically is not capable of doing what Drake Maye does. Bo Nix had Sean Payton, who’s one of the best offensive minds in football, crafting that for him.”
“I’ll tell you this right now, the Bo Nix that you see is probably about as good as the Bo Nix is going to be over the course of his career. Maybe he becomes the 14th or 15th best quarterback. I think Drake has a much higher ceiling if he reaches it.”
3) Meanwhile, one of the guys Maye will be compared against, Texans QB C.J. Stroud, has been busy this offseason putting in a lot of physical work to improve, coming off a season where he took a fair amount of hits.
“I’ve been working really hard on getting my body right — losing body fat, trying to be faster, stronger,” Stroud told ESPN. “And it went really well. … [Working] pocket mobility, running out the pocket, throwing the rock. Everything kind of works hand in hand.”
He’s coming off a season where he was sacked 52 times, so he’s focused on his speed and quickness with the hope that he’ll be able to handle the rush a little better in 2025.
Another area of focus is trying to improve on his turnovers from last year, with Stroud throwing 12 interceptions compared to just five the year before.
Last year against New England, Stroud certainly had a good afternoon. He completed 20-of-31 (64.5%) for 192 yards along with three touchdowns and an interception during Maye’s first start, with the Texans ending up with a 41-21 blowout win.
In that contest, Stroud got off to a hot start, completing 8-of-10 (80%) in the opening quarter for 81 yards and two touchdowns. Stefon Diggs ended up with a good day as well, hauling in 6 passes for 77 yards and a touchdown.
Barring a postseason meeting, the two aren’t slated to face off again in 2025. Fortunately for Maye, Diggs is now on his side, and the hope is that the veteran will be just as dangerous for the Patriots’ offense this season.
4) Patriots running back Trayveon Williams might be busy preparing for the upcoming season, but the 27-year-old is also doing some good work off the field ahead of next week’s start of training camp.
Williams is set to take part in the third annual “TrayVeon Williams Football Camp” at CE King High School in Houston on Saturday.
The event runs from 5pm-9pm, with the camp set to host 200 kids.
Williams is certainly in a crowded backfield. New England has Williams, rookie TreVeyon Henderson, Terrell Jennings, Lan Larison, Rhamondre Stevenson, Antonio Gibson, and Brock Lampe among players battling for a roster spot.
Williams did create some buzz during the spring, but it feels like he’s going to have some stiff competition. Larison seems to be a player many believe could be a factor this summer, which should create a fun battle to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
If they ranked by prospectus, Maye is top 10. If they ranked by passing stats and wins/playoffs, then you get that list. Seems that’s what that list is. Stroud has a high prospectus and is a proven commodity, but look…his interceptions went up? 52 sacks is a clue on root cause there no? Stroud’s line struggled so Stroud will struggle. He had a couple WR go down as well so the skill areas had some challenges. Sound familiar? Team game. Many argued Maye should sit all year given the line was dysfunctional. Skill players lacking. “He might get ruined!!!” was… Read more »