When it comes to Drake Maye and the Patriots offense, the two joint practices with the Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday and Thursday revealed a lot.
While Maye performed well in the joints against the Washington Commanders, this was a completely different exercise.
Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores is one of the best at dialing up pressure, and fooling quarterbacks where it's coming from.
And Maye gave as good as he got, hitting on two long touchdown throws during team periods.
“I think it was good for us. It was good for us to see a defense that does a lot of things,” Maye said said following the first workout Wednesday. “They got us a few times; I felt like we got them. So, it’s good for us to see that and experience a new defense that’s very different from Washington and very different from our defense.”
Garrett Bradbury agreed it was a mixed bag, with Maye also being sacked six times, but thought the Patriots benefited from being exposed to Flores' wizardry.
“I mean, this is as confusing as it’s going to get all year. You know? I think it was strategic by Coach (Vrabel), we were able to come up here,” Bradbury said, “because teams are going to do some of this, they’re not going to do it every play, like maybe they do, but I think it’s really good.”
Day 2 wasn't quite as good as the first day. The Vikings pass rush really made it difficult for Maye to do much of anything save for throwing check-downs.
But the biggest takeaway from the two days is simple enough. Give Maye time, and he'll deliver.
Or, as Vrabel put it, Maye stood up to the pass rush, and was still able to make plays.
"It's easy to go into a blender when you're seeing a bunch of this stuff and kind of scrambling and turning one less than favorable play into a real shit storm," Vrabel said. "So, I didn't see that. I thought he was able to process. And we didn't execute all the time, but I didn't see any panic from him. I thought he was able to communicate and get the things that he wanted and then hit some plays because of it. When we blocked for him, we were able to make some plays."
Here are some links from the week …
Drake Maye didn’t blink under Brian Flores’ barrage of pressure | Karen Guregian
Despite some struggles, Patriots coaches remain encouraged by Drake Maye
Mike Vrabel not soft on Drake Maye crime, and that’s a good thing | Karen Guregian
Does Drake Maye feel any post-Tom Brady pressure going into Year 2?
Drake Maye describes culture Mike Vrabel brings to Patriots: ‘Leave your ego at the door’
Drake Maye talks leadership and possibility of being a Patriots captain
How has Stefon Diggs gone from being Patriots best receiver to an afterthought? | Karen Guregian
Stefon Diggs sends cryptic message about whether he’ll play Week 1
Mike Vrabel has incredulous reaction to Stefon Diggs’ cryptic injury message
How Patriots rookie Will Campbell fared against Vikings Pro Bowl pass rusher
How Patriots’ offensive line fared vs. talented Vikings defense
Carlton Davis says he’s ready to start Patriots season despite injury
Patriots rookie is fastest RB Josh McDaniels ever coached
Efton Chism III has the right stuff. Is that enough to make Patriots roster? | Karen Guregian
Mike Vrabel responds to criticism that Patriots practices are ‘soft’
What was Mike Vrabel’s message after poor second day of joint practices with Vikings?
Draft status won’t factor in Patriots kicking competition
