Drake Maye and the art of the deep ball that’s helping to propel the Patriots – The Athletic

FOXBORO, Mass. — During those backyard games that still stick out vividly for Drake Maye, he was rarely the quarterback. One drawback to being the youngest of four boys is that the older brothers got to pick the fun positions. So Maye was usually a wide receiver.

“They wouldn’t let me play quarterback,” Maye said with a smile.

So Maye didn’t get the rush of hitting a deep pass until later on. As the spotlight on Maye grew and the recruiting stars came, attendance swelled at Myers Park High in Charlotte, N.C., when Maye played. And even as Maye has developed into a terrific NFL quarterback in his second season with the New England Patriots, he still thinks back to that feeling he first experienced on high school fields, one that has carried into packed NFL stadiums.

The way a stadium falls quiet for just a split second when the quarterback heaves the ball deep downfield. The nervous energy of waiting to see if it’ll be caught.

“Just hearing that gasp is pretty cool,” Maye said.

There’s a lot that has made Maye one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL this season and a legitimate MVP candidate. His scrambling ability gives the Patriots offense a high floor because of how he’s able to get out of bad plays. His recognition of defensive schemes has allowed New England to tap into the play-action passing game, unconcerned that Maye has his back to the defense because the coaches are confident he’ll be able to quickly recognize what the opponent is doing when he snaps his head back downfield. The way he throws on the move has limited the effectiveness of pass rushers and allowed the Pats to use rollouts.

But none of his traits has made a bigger difference to the Patriots’ shocking 8-2 start to the season than the deep ball. In just 10 games this season, Maye has already established himself as one of the league’s very best at a concept that appeared to be on the decline.

NFL defenses have recently evolved to play shell coverages. Essentially, that means they devote more defenders deep and take away the big plays. Dare your opposition to gain 4 yards per play over and over and over without making a mistake. If the offense puts together a 12-play drive, so be it — as long as it doesn’t hit any big plays. That’s part of why the Kansas City Chiefs adapted, and Patrick Mahomes started throwing more underneath passes.

Offenses have adjusted by playing with bigger formations to get defenses in their base look, then passing from there, picking on linebackers via shorter routes as teams play with deep safeties.

But here’s where the Patriots have been able to take their offense to another level.

The Patriots, better than any other team in the league besides the Seahawks, manage to play with big personnel packages and hit deep, explosive passes. The Pats are one of just six teams that have kept two or fewer wide receivers on the field for more than half of their plays. Yet they still rank third in explosive pass percentage (defined as the percentage of passes that gained 16 or more yards) and fourth in their percentage of passes that went 15 or more yards downfield, according to Tru Media.

“I think it’s something you have to be able to do to play at this level,” Maye said. “To play in the NFL is to be able to throw some deep shots and give it a chance.”

The deep ball has totally transformed the Patriots offense, adding a level of explosiveness it hasn’t had since Tom Brady left. It ranks 31st in explosive pass rate last season and 30th the year before that. The Patriots haven’t finished a season ranked in the top five of that statistic since 2017.

One important aspect of the newfound deep passing game with Maye goes beyond the quarterback’s arm. New England has lacked a true deep-threat receiver for years. That’s part of why it drafted Kyle Williams in the third round with the hope that he’d develop into that role.

But Williams hadn’t played much before Sunday’s win over the Bucs (in which he had a 72-yard touchdown reception from Maye), in part because of the emergence of Kayshon Boutte. Coach Mike Vrabel and the new regime had Boutte on the trading block before the draft this spring. When no deal materialized, they worked with Boutte and were impressed by how well he developed into the deep threat they sought.

Boutte ranks second in the NFL in yards per reception (18.7), second in air yards per target (17.1) and first in his percentage of targets that went for a first down (64.5).

“He’s strong and has a physical nature to his play where if the ball is in a contested situation, the quarterbacks feel confident that they’re giving an opportunity to go up and fight for it and get it,” Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said. “And then he tracks the ball very well. … He’s certainly had a chance where the ball is going a different direction from a different angle and to run full speed with a defender near you, look back for the ball, have to adjust to it, and then have strong enough hands to complete the play. I think that speaks to why he’s been so successful.”

Even without Boutte on Sunday, the Patriots’ deep passing game with Maye was still effective. If there’s a valid complaint about the offense, it’s that it can be too boom or bust. But as the team preps for this week’s “Thursday Night Football” matchup against the New York Jets, the deep game is still working. The Pats had three completions of 20-plus yards against the Buccaneers, and they now face a Jets team that ranks 26th in expected points added per pass.

That sets up another game in which Maye can let it fly, and this offense can thrive with the deep ball. And another game where Maye might hear that collective gasp of a packed stadium waiting to see where the ball lands.

“Coach was talking about how you can hear the gasp — on the trick plays too, you always hear it,” Maye said. “So, it’s one of those things that, shoot, whenever we have them, try to take them.”