New England hosts Seattle in a solid Week 2 matchup on Sunday. And while the Patriots will start quarterback Jacoby Brissett, backup Drake Maye will take that role at some point.
When that happens, former Raiders head coach and New England play-caller Josh McDaniels said, expect a taste of Josh Allen in Maye’s playing style.
“Got great size, really athletic,” McDaniels said on Julian Edelman’s Games with Names podcast. “I don’t know where he’ll fit in the whole, like the style he’ll play with. I’m interested to see how that develops. Is he going to be a little bit of a runner like Josh Allen was in Buffalo? Guys like that, that have those kinds of attributes, you can use them to run the football, too.”
Maye, the No. 3 overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, ran for 16 combined touchdowns over the last two seasons at North Carolina. And, according to some, he’s certainly not Mac Jones.
While the New England offensive line held up well in a season-opening win at Cincinnati, that unit’s uncertainty factored into the Patriots’ decision to start the year with Brissett. Head coach Jerod Mayo said Maye outplayed Brissett in the preseason.
In last week’s 26-20 win over Denver, Seattle’s defense was tested by the surprising mobility of another rookie quarterback, Bo Nix.
Seattle has its own offensive-line issues. When the Seahawks have the ball on Sunday at Gillette Stadium (1 p.m. ET, FOX), keep an eye on who starts in front of Geno Smith. And as the week progresses, the status of running back Kenneth Walker, who missed practice Wednesday with an abdominal injury that sidelined him late in the victory over the Broncos, will become clearer.