New England Patriots
“My teammates in Tennessee, we talked about that play all the time, how long we ran around.”
Drake Maye’s promising rookie season stood out to new Patriots safety Mike Brown. AP Photo/John Amis
May 14, 2026 | 5:43 PM
2 minutes to read
FOXBOROUGH — Drake Maye put himself on the map during the 2025 season — going from a promising young quarterback into a legitimate MVP candidate en route to a surprise Super Bowl appearance.
But, even during Maye’s rookie season in what was ultimately a four-win season for New England, it didn’t take long for new Patriots safety Mike Brown to realize that the young signal-caller was going to be a force to be reckoned with.
Brown — then a member of the Tennessee Titans during the 2024 season — was on the field during Maye’s top play as a rookie on Nov. 3, 2024, in Nashville.
With New England in need of a touchdown in order to force overtime at Nissan Stadium, Maye scrambled for over 11 seconds as time expired in the fourth quarter — eventually hitting Rhamondre Stevenson in the end zone to knot the game up at 17-17.
While the Titans ultimately prevailed in OT, 20-17, it was an impressive showing from Maye in crunch time, with Brown among the Titans players about to bring down Maye for a game-ending sack before he launched the ball toward Stevenson.
“My teammates in Tennessee, we talked about that play all the time, how long we ran around,” Brown told reporters on Thursday “.And I ended up just blitzing out of the deep half because my guy got pushed out of bounds and [Stevenson] caught it too. That was a crazy play.”
“(He’s a) great player,” Brown added of Maye. “I mean, it was tough scouting against him as well. But just seeing him … the type of leader he is, and he just puts his head down at work.”
Beyond Maye’s baseline numbers and the optics of leading a once-rebuilding roster to a Super Bowl, the 23-year-old QB has drummed up plenty of praise from his new teammates for how he’s set the tone so far during offseason voluntary workouts.
New tight end Julian Hill — who battled against Maye over the last two seasons while playing for the Miami Dolphins — said that it didn’t take long for him to build a rapport with his new QB this spring.
“What a quarterback. And I’m not just saying that to say because I’m a Patriot,” Hill said. “What a quarterback. Guy’s young, guy’s vocal, guy’s a leader.
“He took me in first couple days in, and we in the offensive room, going over fronts. Hell of a quarterback. Man, so this offense finds ways to exploit people, find ways to take advantage of defenses.”
Hill — who signed a three-year, $15 million contract with New England this spring — is looking forward to working alongside a fellow North Carolina native like Maye for the next few seasons.
“I already knew what it was. Us Carolina cats, we cut from the same cloth a little bit,” Hill said of Maye. “He’s a competitor, you saw it on the field. I’m just honored to get a chance to play with him, and get a chance to earn his trust, and be able to protect him. Be able to know that he can lean on me in crunch time. I’m excited to play with him.”
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
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