New England loves a good generational sports argument. Ted Williams or David Ortiz? Bill Russell or Larry Bird? While it might be premature to stack Drake Maye against Tom Brady, it’s worth taking a look at Maye’s sparkling second season against Brady’s second year as a starter (2002).

It’s always important to put statistics in some sort of context. In this case, to note that the game has changed dramatically since 2002. (For example, Brady led the league in touchdown passes that season with 28. This season, Matthew Stafford’s 46 TD passes were tops in the NFL.)

It’s also worth noting that while 2002 marked Brady’s second season as a starter, he had the benefit of sitting for almost all of his rookie season of 2000. Brady made his 20th start in the NFL (including postseason) at the age of 25, in his third season (Week 3 in 2002).

Maye — who was born days before that 2002 season — made his 20th start in the NFL in Week 8 of the 2025 campaign. It was his second season in the league, and he was 23. The differences might seem negligible, but it makes a difference when comparing quarterbacks, particularly of different eras. The days of drafting a quarterback and having him sit behind a veteran were routine in the early days of the 21st century. Now, an accelerated learning process for many signal-callers is the norm.

Read the full story from Christopher Price and John Hancock at BostonGlobe.com.