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From a 4-13 season during his rookie year to a 14-3 finish in 2025, it’s been quite a turnaround for quarterback Drake Maye.
As a rookie, Maye experienced a tough campaign where he was forced to make the best of a patchwork offensive line, and turn the offense into something more than the anemic unit we saw last season.
It’s safe to say, that part has been mission accomplished.
Coming off a season where Maye finished with 2,276 yards passing along with 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, 2025 has certainly been a remarkably different story.
Maye closed out Sunday completing 14-of-18 for 191 yards along with a touchdown, while also engineering four other touchdown drives where both Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson each had rushing touchdowns.
That saw Maye settle in up 38-10 as he walked to the sideline with just over 12 minutes left in the game. Maye enjoyed the remainder of the contest as a spectator for the second time in as many weeks in favor of Joshua Dobbs, who finished the game.
As a result, it’s quite a contrast to where they were at this time last year.
“Yeah, I mean, we’ve come a long way,” said Maye after the game. “I think it takes everybody. It took everybody in the locker room, took every coach, and I think it starts now. It’s what we wanted, one of the goals, host home playoff games, and this is what we wanted to [do].”
For Maye, it’s been an incredible turnaround. Coming off a rookie season where Maye threw 15 interceptions and had nine fumbles, six of which he lost, people certainly had questions. They wondered if he’d be able to shed that style of play and be smart enough with the football to ultimately reach the potential so many felt he had.
Earlier this season, there were definitely doubts. A loss to both the Raiders and Steelers early in the season started the chatter. He was shaky in the opener against the Raiders, and a five-turnover performance two weeks later against Pittsburgh saw them suffer a tough loss that dropped them to 1-2 and seemed to be the turning point.
In that game, Maye threw a pick and lost a fumble, which ignited criticism of those who believed that style of play was just who he was. Many of those same pundits and fans believed Maye ‘wasn’t the guy’ and that the Patriots would likely have to find another solution next offseason.
But Maye never waivered. He kept putting in the work behind the scenes, stayed consistent and steady, and the results began to pay dividends.
It started when New England blew out the Panthers the following week in front of the fans at Gillette Stadium 42-13, and then followed that up with a 23-20 win over the Bills in what was their first real statement win of the season.
At 3-2, it just felt like Maye’s confidence grew. New England followed up their win over Buffalo by running off eight-straight victories, with the club quietly taking control of the AFC East after running off 10 straight wins.
Instead of wondering if he’d be the quarterback beyond this season, fans then began to believe they had someone special under center as chants of “MVP” started to ring out in regularity.
“I think it starts from top down,” said Maye when it came to why this season has been so different. “I think from the Krafts, to them deciding to hire Coach Vrabel, to bringing him in here, and just really just buying into what he was coaching us hard and coaching us to believe in. I think from there, it’s us players that got some new players in here, some new faces that I think that from the organization has really gelled well together.”
As the season comes to a close, Maye’s turnaround is also a big part of the things he mentioned. The totals on offense have been pretty shocking. Maye’s passing touchdown on Sunday was his 31st of the season, more than double his output of 15 from the previous year. The offense overall also saw an increase in rushing touchdowns, jumping from 11 last season to 22 in 2025.
But it’s the total team numbers that are pretty mindblowing.
At the end of the 2024 season, New England finished 30th in the NFL in points scored last year, having put up just 289 points.
This season? They closed the year out on Sunday by ranking second in the NFL in that category behind the Rams (518) with 490.
It’s a remarkable turnaround, and Maye has his team sitting with a home playoff game up next at Gillette Stadium next weekend, with the Los Angeles Chargers set to visit.
“It’s win or go home, and the mentality,” said Maye. “I think we just have to stay playing like us. We’ve built this identity and played to it, and I think good things happen.”
From not being ‘the guy’ to now being a 23-year-old quarterback who has his team in the playoffs and the fans believing this team can absolutely hang with whoever they might face in the coming weeks.
What a difference a year makes.
With the regular season now in the rearview, that work will get started this week.
“We’ll get ready and get rolling and try to do what we do every week, which is prepare and figure out who we have available and what we feel like the keys are going to be and try to practice and be ready to go,” said Vrabel after Sunday’s game. “That’s all we’ve done all year, and it’s all we’ll be able to do this week in the playoffs.”
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