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Henry McKenna
AFC East Reporter
Drake Maye’s feet are restless.
During these early days of training camp, the New England Patriots rookie quarterback is working on settling his feet in the pocket. With all that arm strength, he didn’t always need his lower body to generate accuracy and power in college. In the NFL, he’ll need to take control of his footwork to meet the league’s best-in-the-world level of play.
And that’s why, even between plays, his feet are restless.
When quarterbacks Jacoby Brissett, Joe Milton and Bailey Zappe are running the Patriots offense, Maye is often seen pacing. He walks between coaches and teammates to pick their brains after his repetitions — and to get a sense of what’s working (or not working) during the other quarterbacks’ reps. There is no shortage of staff available to Maye, including offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, quarterbacks coach TC McCartney and offensive assistants Evan Rothstein and Ben McAdoo. Maye has also spent time with Brissett, tight end Hunter Henry and receiver Jalen Reagor.
Maye’s performance in training camp has closely mirrored his play in college. That was good enough to land him in the third-overall draft slot. But with all top quarterback prospects, there are always plenty of questions.
If there was one evaluation that has proved prescient, it might be that of former Patriots coach Bill Belichick. He nailed the assessment of what New England must have seen from Maye at North Carolina and what the Patriots are seeing from the rookie in camp.
“He’s going to need some work in reading defenses, reading coverages,” Belichick said on ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show” on draft night. “He’s kind of quick to bail out of the pocket. He’s going to have to hang in there a little bit longer and find those receivers.”
While many thought Belichick’s assessment was harsh, it was clear that he was similarly critical of every draft prospect, not as willing to offer…
Source link : https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/patriots-qb-drake-mayes-start-camp-matches-bill-belichicks-evaluation
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Publish date : 2024-07-29 15:43:01
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