By making it to Super Bowl LX, the New England Patriots have completed one of the sharpest one-year turnarounds in NFL history. The bulk of the credit has gone to star quarterback Drake Maye, whose biggest improvement has been a mental adjustment, according to Patriots guard Jared Wilson.
Wilson joined the team at the same time as Maye after getting selected in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft. In just two years, he has seen significant growth in Maye as a leader, which he believes has driven his success.
“I can just tell you in that huddle, the confidence and how he speaks, has grown so much,” Wilson said, via Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald. “It's just so dominant and assertive now. And it was before, but you can tell he's just picked it up just a notch. You can feel it.”
The soft-spoken Maye is not someone fans view as a loud voice, but his teammates gush over the respect he commands in the locker room.
Maye recorded 2,276 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions as a rookie, after taking over as the starter in Week 6. It was a good start, but he had several areas to improve in, namely his 12 turnovers in as many starts.
Fans expected Maye to take a leap in year two, but few predicted the magnitude of his improvement. Maye ended the regular season with 4,394 passing yards, 31 touchdowns, eight interceptions and four rushing touchdowns while completing 72 percent of his passes. He is the betting favorite to win the AP NFL MVP award during Thursday's NFL Honors show.
