Patriots QB Drake Maye Transcript 11/4
PATRIOTS QUARTERBACK DRAKE MAYE
PRESS CONFERENCE
November 4, 2026
Q: Do the Packers have, perhaps, one of the better defenses you’ve faced this year?
DM: They jump out on tape. I think they’re physical. They’re well-coached. They don’t let up a lot of explosive plays. I think they’re in the right spot. They’ve got veteran guys. They’ve got young guys playing well. They’re good in the back end. They keep things in front. They mix up pressure looks. They’re getting guys free to the quarterback. We’ve got a tough challenge. I played the defensive coordinator [Jonathan Gannon] one time my rookie year, and they do some good stuff. They do some really good stuff and will give us a lot of challenges. So, we’ve got a tough challenge, and then we’ve got to be on our communication. We’re at home and have to try to use that to our advantage, but at the same time, we’ve got to be on our P’s and Q’s this week for sure.
Q: That was a long time ago, but what, if anything, do you think might be relevant to how they approach you Sunday, Gannon specifically?
DM: Yeah, it’s a different offense and he’s got different players and personnel. It’d be hard for me to correlate or guess. I think they do a good job of mixing up pressures. They get after the quarterback. They stop the run. They don’t let up a lot of explosive passes. I’m guessing that’s his mindset on defense. He’s a great coach and they do a lot of things well. So, it’d be hard for me to guess.
Q: Drake, if Hunter’s [Henry] situation lingers and you’re without him, how do you describe what you lose without him being there? He seems like a guy that you just have a great relationship with.
DM: Yeah. No doubt. I think he’s been someone for me that I can count on since my first snap in there my rookie year. He’s been a security blanket and a great guy in the huddle, a great leader on this team. So, anytime you lose a guy like Hunter, a captain that does everything the right way, talks to the guys in the huddle, knows what I like, my body language, route running, does stuff in the run game. It’s tough. But I know he’ll do his best to get back out there as quick as he can.
Q: What’s it like getting Mack Hollins back?
DM: Yeah, Mack, looking forward to seeing, throughout the week, how he’s looking. I think anytime that you get a guy like Mack, who is a veteran in this league, a classic Tar Heel who does things the right way, he’s smart and he’s easy to throw to. He does a lot of things the right way. It’s comforting definitely having No. 13 out there and looking forward to seeing whenever he gets a chance – whether it’s this week or down the road – to get back.
Q: We could hear him back out there on the field today just talking it up. What does he add to the field in terms of his personality and what he brings to the team?
DM: Yeah, you guys got to know Mack. He just brings energy. I think the guys feed off it, and it’s a good reminder for me. We play a really serious game with pressure. They ask a lot out of us, week in and week out in this sport, in this league. It’s a reminder to also have fun with the guys around. I think he’s a constant reminder for these young guys to take it seriously, but don’t take it too harshly, and realize that we’re playing a kids game and just happen to be at the highest level. So, just go out there and be yourself. I think that’s what Mack Hollins is.
Q: With the Packers, what makes them so good at generating turnovers on defense?
DM: Yeah, I think speaking from playing zone coverage, they’ve got great eyes. The guys, they got eyes on the quarterback, they make plays on the football. They can obviously catch well. The safeties, I think, are great players. They do a lot of things well and they read the quarterback very well, mix up in zone looks. Tip balls have turned into picks that they’ve shown. So, they’ve just had a habit for creating turnovers in the pocket with the quarterback. So, they just have got some free rushers help, too, of the quarterback panicking and trying to fit some stuff to tight windows. They’re good at keeping you in some negative plays. They make you longer distances. It’s hard. You try to stay ahead of the chains. They do a good job of pushing you back.
Q: It’s been said that this game could be a measuring stick for you guys, considering you’re both 5-3, you’re trying to keep pace in your respective divisions. How much do you feel like this is a game where you can see what you guys are made of at this point in the season?
DM: For sure. It’s a playoff team from last year. A playoff team with a great defense, a really good offense, a good quarterback. Then, for us, it’s another NFC North opponent that’s been someone that we don’t play very often, but has been historically, in the past couple years, a playoff football team. They’re good, they’ve beaten good teams, and they continue to show up every year. We’ve definitely got a challenge and a chance to see how we look.
Q: Rhamondre [Stevenson] mentioned that Mack really loves to block. How would you say he embraces some of the intangibles of the wide receiver position?
DM: I think he’s learned in this league, playing, the more that you can get on the field, the more that the chances you’ve got a chance to catch the ball. That’s in the run game. That’s leading off play action, little things like that. I think he doesn’t get enough credit for plays outside of drop back passes. He’s a very good player. I remember watching him growing up as a Carolina fan. He’s good in the passing game. He can run by you. He runs routes hard. He’s got a big body over the middle. He doesn’t get enough credit for his drop back pass game ability as a receiver. Obviously, he can do a lot of things as a big guy that with a lot of these smaller guys, he’s at the advantage.
Q: When it comes to DeMario Douglas, how much fun do you have playing with a guy like that, where he can turn a simple catch into a touchdown? It seems like every play he has a big smile on his face every day.
DM: He’s always smiling. Yeah, he’s just a joy to be out there with. You’re talking about what I was just talking about, of just the pressure and how much this game is, you’re so locked in and want to play well. He’s a reminder of having fun in it. I can imagine every kid watching Pop and every Patriots fan, it’s hard. I was telling somebody the other day, it’s hard not to love a teammate like Pop. He’s just, as you guys know, being in the locker room, he’s constantly the same. He’s always laughing and smiling. I love when he starts dancing in the end zone. We got him in the end zone a couple times this year, and like I said, he can turn an easy catch and he’s hard to tackle. So, like I’ve always said, you can’t guard him in a phone booth, so he’s fun. We’ve got to get him the ball in space more and let him go do his thing because he’s fun to watch.
Q: With all the injuries that have happened this season, how nice has it been to have someone like DeMario Douglas out there, week in and week out, that you know if you give him the ball, he’s going to make something happen?
DM: For sure. He’s bought into just keeping on doing things the right way, blocking. You’ve seen him on some blocks, finishing plays. He’s bought into the identity, and he’s seen the other side of it, of getting rewarded. It’s just so cool for me to see guys that work hard and do the right thing – he’s really never a pain, never getting on me, never yelling at me to throw the ball to him. He’s just doing things the right way and just showing up.
Q: Drake, I understand you’re locked in on the Packers. I was curious your thoughts on Tom Brady being the analyst for FOX in this game, his first game as an analyst, coming back to call it. As the quarterback in the game, having him in the booth, what are your thoughts on that?
DM: Yeah, it’s obviously cool. What a legend to come back here, and it’s definitely cool for him, I bet, to come back and call a game in the stadium where he won so many games and was a legend in this stadium. Really, him, the fans and their teams built Gillette into what it is now. So, I bet it’s cool for him. It really doesn’t affect me much. You talk to him, and I’m not even sure we’re allowed to talk to him in production because he’s with the Raiders. But it’s always cool to see. You don’t hear much back from the TV copies. You don’t really watch much of my own TV copies unless it’s little things of, if I said anything that I think could hurt us. But really other than that, I know he hangs out around the field sometimes, so you just try to go appreciate him for what he left here, and that’s really about it.
Q: Drake, when you think about your play under pressure, you were one of the better quarterbacks under pressure last year, and that’s been the case basically since September. How do you explain that? I know part of it is scrambling, mobility and decision-making, but what are you feeling? Is that anything you ever worked on at a young age? How do you explain that?
DM: I think one of the biggest things is trusting the guys up front. You’ve got to trust guys, and you’ve got to trust the guys running routes for you, that they’re going to be in the right spot. I think one of the biggest advantages of having my dad play quarterback growing up, of now looking at the rush, he used to rip me if I started looking down and looking at the rush. He just realized that I realized at a young age that you’re just going to have to take some hits and stand in there, and it’s part of this position: getting back up, taking hits and delivering shots. Some of it’s being able to avoid it and go make plays, and some of it’s just taking the hit, getting back up and going to do it again. So, I think that’s a little bit of credit to my dad and just knowing at a young age, you’ve got to, “Man, you better hang in there.” That’s what he always used to tell me, “Hang in there,” and give it to the guys that run better than I do.
Q: With Gronk [Rob Gronkowski] going into the Hall of Fame this weekend, how have you gotten to know him a little bit? How often are his highlights, his tape shown to you guys by Josh [McDaniels] and the coaching staff?
DM: Yeah, it’s real cool for me, speaking of being a younger guy with all these players, Julian [Edelman] and Gronk going to the Hall of Fame, guys that I grew up watching, grew up playing with on Madden and having on my fantasy team. I had a Gronk T-shirt jersey growing up, I remember I was a big T-shirt jersey guy in the NFL, wore it to school. So, I’m a big fan of his game. You see a lot of his film come up in the quarterback room of his ability to break tackles, make catches. I think I saw one catch the other day. He made some one-hander against someone, Coach McDaniels says it’s one of the best catches he’s ever seen. I think he had something across the middle that Tom threw a little bit late, and he went up and made a one-handed grab near the goal line. So, that’s a special player that I’ve gotten to know with a special personality. Just like I said, another appreciation for, if not the best, one of the best to ever play.
Q: Drake, from your standpoint, how’s A.J. [Brown] doing? When someone like that, who’s talented really wants to be back, do you talk with him? Do you have a message for him? How do you approach that?
DM: Yeah, I think my message – I see him all the time, and I don’t think it’s something to share with you guys. So, I know he’s working hard to get back, and I think it’s just something where he wishes he’s out there. And he’s working, and we know how much he can help us. So, it’s just trusting him getting back, trusting in the Lord and putting his work. Just keep on attacking each and every day, one day at a time.
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