Drake Maye lost his first Super Bowl. His future — and the Patriots' — remains bright

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Drake Maye had just left the media stage the Thursday before Super Bowl LX, deftly navigating questions from reporters like he did defenders in the pocket during his MVP campaign.

At a nearby table, wide receiver Kyle Williams couldn’t wait to see what Maye would do on a bigger stage Sunday in Levi’s Stadium.

“He’s breathtaking,” Williams said. “The types of throws he makes, how calm he is, how he can really do anything. Confident, mobile, competitive … I can’t wait to see what he continues to do.”

That comment applies to Maye’s future, which is incredibly bright. It’s also what makes Maye’s performance Sunday against Seattle so jarring.

The QB struggled to recapture his elite regular-season form in the postseason, and the Patriots managed only 13 points against the Seahawks — none until the fourth quarter. New England had nearly as many punts (seven) as Maye passing completions (eight) through three quarters, as Seattle’s timely blitzes and interior defensive pressure frazzled Maye and his offensive line all game.

Maye says he received a pain-killing injection to his right shoulder before the game. But he was far from satisfied with his performance despite not being fully healthy.

“This is fuel,” Maye said he told teammates after the game. “If it’s not, then I don’t know what the feeling would do for you. Because this is tough.”

Storybook endings are rare, and Maye’s story is nowhere near its end.

Maye’s presence — coupled with a storied, championship-driven organization, the Coach of the Year and a much-improved Patriots roster — highlights the optimism and the trappings of a Super Bowl run for a 23-year-old quarterback.

To Williams and many others, Maye’s obvious strengths should help New England remain in contention. He has every tool to succeed. New England has a chance to win almost every game he starts.

Owner Robert Kraft, 84, is a proven owner. Executive Jonathan Kraft, Robert’s son, is the succession plan. Vrabel is 50, squarely in his coaching prime. On paper, this Super Bowl appearance could be the first of many.

But that’s hardly a slam dunk, as history has shown. Miami’s Dan Marino was also 23 years old when he reached Super Bowl XIX. He never returned despite remaining elite, perhaps the best quarterback never to win a ring. Joe Burrow was 25 when he led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl LVI in Year 2. Since then, he has one playoff appearance in four years as injuries mounted.

For Maye to avoid that distinction, much has to go right — including luck — in this era of parity.

Producing an ultra-rare, multi-decade NFL dynasty takes years of carefully crafted moves. Just ask the Kansas City Chiefs, who are struggling to maintain momentum after a generational run.

“The best team doesn’t always make it to the Super Bowl,” Patriots cornerback Carlton Davis III said during the week leading up to the game. “You never know when you’ll make it here. This game is so hard to get to. There are so many different variables you have to consider.”

But the Patriots have certainties — mainly, a potent triumvirate — that should tilt the math in their favor for the next few years, multiple league executives say.

“When you have the quarterback, the head coach and the playcaller [Josh McDaniels] that they have, you’re always going to have a chance,” an AFC executive said. “They didn’t get to the Super Bowl because they had an easy schedule or got lucky. It’s because they have those pieces in place, and they are building a good team around them.”

Seattle’s Super Bowl blueprint showed Maye’s importance to that equation.

“The plan was to get to Maye, disrupt him. We knew he was their whole team,” Seahawks edge rusher Uchenna Nwosu said Sunday night. “We knew if we affected him, their whole game plan would be nothing. … Drake’s a great guy, has a lot of talent and a bright future ahead of him.”

In April 2024, the race was on to enter the top three selections. Most teams considered Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Maye in the top tier, with Williams having a slight edge above the others.

However, several NFL scouts who spoke to ESPN on the condition of anonymity say they had Maye as their top quarterback, or at least No. 2. Some of that is revisionist history. One AFC executive recalled his organization was split between Daniels and Maye for the No. 2.

“I think people underestimated how football-smart he is,” an NFC executive said from the Senior Bowl.

With Williams going to Chicago at No. 1 and Daniels to Washington at No. 2, the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings attempted to move into the Patriots’ No. 3 spot to select Maye. The Giants drafted wide receiver Malik Nabers with the No. 6 pick, while the Vikings selected J.J. McCarthy 11th. Team sources say the trade calls did not create tension in the New England team facility; the Patriots weren’t moving off Maye.

“We knew what we had,” a team source said.

Seattle does, too. It didn’t take long for Seahawks coaches, through two weeks of Super Bowl prep, to identify traits Maye shares with the greats. There are the obvious ones, such as his ability to deliver a back-shoulder throw with precision and velocity. The deep balls pop on tape. His mobility to scramble for first downs is a bonus.

But he does something specific that Seattle had to account for; something that was on display Sunday: his ability to buy extra time during a play.

As Seahawks defensive coordinator Aden Durde put it, most outcomes for a quarterback on a particular down, good or bad, are determined within 2.3 seconds.

“Against this guy, you constantly have to play beyond the 2.3,” Durde said. “There are special quarterbacks who truly come to life then. He’s one of them.”

The primary reason, Durde said, is Maye’s ability to keep his eyes up while looking downfield in the pocket.

“A lot of QBs that we’ve played against, when you press the pocket on them, their eyes go down,” Durde said. “He’s constantly looking up and downfield.”

Seattle eliminated those strengths. The Seahawks, a championship defense for the ages, condensed the pocket and occupied passing lanes. The Patriots lived in third-and-long for most of Sunday’s game, resulting in six sacks, a lost fumble and two late interceptions for Maye. Seattle turned Maye’s turnovers into 17 points.

Except for back-to-back impressive throws to lead a touchdown drive early in the fourth quarter, Maye never looked comfortable. He looked inexperienced and unable to elevate his team with a multitude of tight-window throws.

This was a theme over four playoff games. Maye averaged 207 passing yards per game through the AFC playoffs, well short of his regular-season average of 258 per game. And much of his 295 yards Sunday came in garbage time.

Conversely, league MVP Matthew Stafford threw for eight touchdowns and zero interceptions in three games vs. Seattle this year.

The young quarterback must learn from the playoff struggles.

But his determination to keep his eyes looking downfield and his ability to prolong the play are considered rare enough to increase New England’s chances to win on a yearly basis.

“And you’ve got one to two more years of a good starting quarterback on a rookie contract,” the AFC executive said. The Patriots are taking advantage of that benefit.

One promising sign for the Patriots’ future — though it will be hard to replicate — is the stellar effort in talent acquisition and development over the past year, setting the stage for a strong roster in 2026 and beyond.

The Patriots added production through free agency and the draft in 2025, sparked by a league-high $209 million in guaranteed money committed in March.

Their top eight free agent signings all hit: defensive tackle Milton Williams (four years, $104 million), wide receiver Stefon Diggs (three years, $63 million), Davis (three years, $54 million), pass rusher Harold Landry III (three years, $43.5 million), linebacker Robert Spillane (three years, $33 million), right tackle Morgan Moses (three years, $24 million), center Garrett Bradbury (two years, $9.5 million) and wide receiver Mack Hollins (two years, $8.4 million) all started and played well.

Lower-level deals for pass rusher K’Lavon Chaisson (one year, $3 million), defensive lineman Khyiris Tonga (one year, $2.1 million) and linebacker Jack Gibbens (one year, $1.3 million) paid off in a big way, too.

Couple that with the rookie class playing 18% of the team’s snaps, the fourth-highest rate in the NFL, and the team’s roster is on the upswing. That percentage is the highest for a team to reach a Super Bowl since 2007, as far back as ESPN’s snap-count data stretches.

“They still need to build out the roster a little bit more, but they will be able to do that because they have enough core pieces already addressed,” a high-ranking executive with an NFL team said.

Just as he was measured in the lead-up to the game, Davis maintained his perspective after the loss. “We put the league on notice,” the cornerback said. “No one expected us to be here. We have a bright future, a lot of good young players.”

Spending to facilitate a title run can work if done right. Philadelphia did the same in 2024, spending $275 million in guaranteed money for free agents before its Super Bowl run the next season.

It was no accident that these pieces came together.

“We have guys who have felt underrated, guys cut from other teams — we want to prove we belong,” Williams said. “When we come together, we can do something special. Guys want to prove the organization right, being part of the Patriot legacy. Vrabel was clear to his new free agents: stay away from expectations. He told Davis that directly and in team meetings. Stay true to the grind.”

New England identified one core trait for defensive free agent additions: aggression. Patriots players can be themselves and perform freely, as long as they stay within the framework of the defense, players and coaches say. Perhaps the biggest catalyst for a sustained run is not a player, or even Vrabel. “It’s McDaniels, who’s not going anywhere,” an industry source said.

McDaniels has been New England’s offensive coordinator three different times, each one a success. But his failed head coaching stints in Denver and Las Vegas make him the rare case of a high-level offensive coach who most likely won’t get plucked for a head coaching job in the near term.

Perhaps he gets a third shot one day. But McDaniels is getting a second shot at developing Maye in 2026.

McDaniels’ outlook on that says a lot about Maye — and the Patriots’ future.

“The view from the top is better than the view from the bottom,” McDaniels said about player development, citing additional knowledge from a year’s experience.

“Next spring, we will start at the bottom of the mountain but will go up it a lot quicker.”