Since the Moment Drake Maye Got That In-Game Pep Talk From Mike Vrabel, He's Been the Best QB in Football Once Again
Let the record reflect that this moment in Week 3, Drake Maye throwing his second interception of the day at Jacksonville - this one to Jarrian Jones that he returned 31 yards to set up yet another Jaguars touchdown - was the lowest point in his young and stellar career.
He would lead just one more drive in that one before being mercifully replaced by the Italian Sub, Tommy DeVito. Leaving him with one passing touchdown and six picks on the season. He seemed lost. Broken. A mere shadow of 2025's runner-up MVP we all came to know, love, and trust with the football.
What we couldn't be sure of in that moment was whether the turnover was Maye's rock bottom, or would he continue to drill deeper in his fall from grace. That was the question in everyone's mind when Jones's pick, and Jacksonville's subsequent score, gave us this viral moment:
At the time, the score of 28-3 felt ironic. A mathematical symbol of one of the great Patriots triumphs seeming to mock us. Numerology itself telling New England Drake Maye was never going to be Tom Brady. That he was fool's gold, and we were the fools who allowed ourselves ... well, to get fooled. And we were left to wonder what Mike Vrabel was telling his Franchise QB, through what appeared to be tears in his eyes.
It's been five weeks since that moment. And the world needs to ask again what words were exchanged. Because whatever Vrabel said, it had to be one of the great pep talks of all time. Here's what Maye has done since, including that 4th quarter in Jacksonville:
Passing: 110/160 (68.8%), 1,480 yards (9.3 YPA), 14 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: 31 carries, 134 yards (4.3 YPA), 3 TD
Total touchdowns: 17
Passer Rating: 121.9
QBR: 83.5 (a simple average of the five games)
Bear in mind that this passer rating would be the second highest ever recorded for a season (Aaron Rodgers posted a 122.5 in 2011). And that QBR would be the 4th highest (behind 2007 Brady, '06 Peyton Manning, and '11 Rodgers again). And he's done so without AJ Brown for three of those games, without Romeo Doubs for three, and without Mack Hollins for four.
Moreover, since that sideline conversation, the Pats have scored on roughly half of their drives. Not coincidentally, the next possession, when Maye went 4-of-6 for 84 yards and a field goal. You can argue the Jags were content to give up catches and yards in soft coverage with a 25-point lead. But the results are the results. Whatever Maye had going on in his head when he got back to the huddle, he was sorting himself out.
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There are legendary pep talks throughout history. When some great leader said exactly what the people needed to hear. Henry V's St. Crispin's Day speech Agincourt. Churchill's "We shall fight them on the beaches" radio address. FDR's "The only thing we have to fear" in front of Congress right after Pearl Harbor. Herb Brooks at Lake Placid. And it seems whatever magic words Vrabel used, they belong in this mighty company.
Some day we will look back on that moment, and at all the success they led to, and fully appreciate what a turning point in history it was. Vrabel cast some sort of magic spell that gave a struggling young athlete the confidence he was lacking, and made him realize his full potential yet again. This alone is why I wanted him as my head coach. And Maye as my QB. Greatness awaits.
Giphy Images.
Giphy Images.