FOXBOROUGH – Drake Maye had his best practice day Monday. At least, his best with the media looking on.
And it wasn’t close.
After a four-pick outing two weeks ago, and an uneven performance last week during the second open session, Maye looked much more at ease in the new system during the latest OTA session.
Prior to the workout, Ashton Grant, his quarterbacks coach, talked about what it’s been like working with Maye as he goes through the trials and tribulations of adjusting to a new system.
“(It’s been) awesome. I think he’s a pro’s pro,” Grant said. “He’s taken all the installs that we’ve been putting in, and has been running with him.
“He comes out here and puts his best foot forward every day. And we’re continuing to get better.”
There wasn’t much question about that with Maye’s performance Monday as he completed 14-of-16 passes during competitive drills.
Completions aside, Maye got a little more aggressive, signaling a bit more confidence.
Asked how well he’s picked up the intricacies and nuances of Josh McDaniels’ system, particularly with regard to pre-snap responsibilities, Grant indicated Maye has a “great grasp” of it thus far.
And that’s largely because the coaches have made sure to get in as many reps with Maye, as well as the other two quarterbacks, as possible.
“There’s going to be a lot of repetition going from one system, to a completely new one,” he said. “So as many as many reps as we can, and we’re trying to steal as many as we can when we’re inside. I think he’s done a great job taking steps forward.”
Asked what he feels Maye does really well, Grant pointed to implementing what he learns in the class room.
“I think he does a good job of taking the meeting room to the field,” Grant said. “So every day we come out here with different types of emphasis and what we want to work on, and every day he’s really tried to attack those things, and really being intentional about his progression in the offense. I think he does that super well.”
Grant acknowledged that Maye has had some ups and downs, but believes this is what this time of year is for. Making mistakes, learning from them, and not getting too discouraged by the process.
“I think this time of year is great for the quarterback. Either he does something well that we try to replicate the next time, or he does something that maybe we want to tweak or learn or adjust from,” Grant said.
“This time of year as a quarterbacks coach has always been my favorite just because it’s so directed towards passing. There’s never a threat of the run for the defense, or play-action pass. So it’s just a time for us to be able to focus on our fundamentals and technique, and be a little bit at a disadvantage, and try to see if we can take our coaching to the field.”
