Is Drake Maye Overrated?

by Zak Drapeau

Sportz Nation - 2/11/2026

So with full disclosure I am not a Patriots fan and while this article's topic may seem absurd to some of you, It's worth exploring after his abysmal performance in not only Super Bowl LX but the entire 2026 Playoffs.

Photo by Adam Hunger/ Associated Press Content Services for the NFL

When asking if Maye is Overrated, one needs to first conclude how he is "rated" at the moment by most pundits and media alike. In short, Maye is closely considered a Top-10 Quarterback in the league while being somewhere closer to #5 than he is to #10 after finishing the season second in MVP voting and reaching Super Bowl LX.

His elite accuracy and ability to improvise and run the football have been cited as his best skills along with his youth being a big reason people see him as not only great now, but possibly the future of the league.

Or so we thought...

Look, even after a fantastic season where he proved he is among the best QBs in the league, anybody objectively looking at his performance in the 2026 Playoffs has to see that he was MUCH better in the regular season.

In his 4 games, Maye completed 70-of-120 passes, (58%) for 828 yards with 6 Touchdowns and 4 interceptions while being sacked 21 times. It is also appropriate to mention he faced 4 of the Top-7 defenses during this run. When contrasting his regular season averages to his playoff averages, the differences are clear:

Regular Season Averages:

72.0 comp%, 258 pass yards, 1.82 pass TDs, .47 INTs, 8.9 yards per pass and 2.77 sacks

Playoff Averages:

58.3 comp%, 207 pass yards, 1.5 pass TDs, 1 INT, 6.9 Yards per attempt and 5.25 sacks

The stark-difference in play is easily visible from regular to post season for Maye but the defenses he played are also parallel. Much has been made about the "easy schedule" for the Patriots this season and it was exposed in the playoffs. Facing the "worst" defenses allowed Drake Maye to be 2nd in MVP voting while facing the "best" defenses made Drake Maye look pedestrian in the playoffs.

Now, we circle back to the conversation of the day, "Is Drake Maye overrated?".

Here's the thing, if were rating him as the 2nd or 1st best Quarterback in the league based on his 2025 season then yes he is overrated. If we're rating him as one of the better QBs in the league right now and a future star then no we are not, in fact the latter of that argument is a perfect rating for him in my opinion.

Photo by Charles Krupa/ Associated Press

Drake Maye's 2025 season was a culmination of 4 things in my opinion that made him perform better than what he should have.

#1. Drake Maye can Play

Whether you like or loathe the Patriots it is undisputable now that this kid is for real, he has remarkable accuracy, an ability to make plays with his legs and a great arm that can stretch the field

#2. His Schedule was Easy

It's unavoidable now even for New Englanders, Maye had a fortunate schedule where they could take advantage of bad defenses like the Jets and Dolphins twice, Raiders, Browns, Saints, Bengals and Titans.

#3. Coaching Additions

Mike Vrabel rightfully won Coach of the Year for his excellent ability to rally the Patriots together and win games but equally important was the addition of the Assistant Coach of the Year Josh McDaniels who brilliantly formed this offense and called the right plays to execute it.

#4. Offseason Additions

Adding key pieces like Stefon Diggs, TreVeyon Henderson, 4 O-lineman and Mack Hollins gave Maye a considerably better supporting cast than in his rookie season.

So it all depends on who you ask. Before the big game on Sunday I released my own rankings of the NFL's QBs that you can read here, where I have him as #7 in "Current Ability" rankings and #4 in "QBs of the Future" rankings.

I realize how hypocritical this statement will be as I've created this article but, I don't believe it's appropriate to put too much credence into rating this 23-year old right now. This is an exercise to not only humble the Patriots and in turn Drake Maye but also show that he is just getting started. Drake Maye was the 2nd youngest QB to ever start in a Super Bowl and should only get better and better... even if he's not that great right now.

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Make sure to stay tuned as we continue coverage of the NFL Offseason.

-Z.D. (@DrapeauZak on Twitter)