Patriots QB Drake Maye Transcript 2/5
PATRIOTS QUARTERBACK DRAKE MAYE
PRESS CONFERENCE
February 5, 2026
Q: Was there a point in the season where you recognized or realized this team was special and had a chance to win a Super Bowl?
DM: I think it’s hard to maybe pinpoint one exact point. I know probably the win on the road at Buffalo was huge for us. I think just finding a way to win that game against a tough opponent on the road, a team that’s been historically great in playoffs, had a home game win streak and being able to win there. But really other than that, I think just the continued success on the road has been huge for us. Continued success on the road and trying to find a way to do it one more time here.
Q: Hi Drake. Essentially, this Patriots team has gone from worst to first. Besides the obvious, what is the biggest year-to-year difference that you’ve seen in the building this year?
DM: That’s a great question. I think one of the biggest things is winning helps. Winning helps, and I think just buying into the same belief in each other and what Coach [Mike] Vrabel’s trying to get accomplished. From day one, I feel like the guys have really taken what Coach Vrabel has wanted to do with us and have just really applied it to their lives in every single way. Whether it’s on the field, off the field, getting treatment, doing little things, making great decisions off the field. I think the biggest thing is just – Coach Vrabel always says he treats us how we treat the team. I think that’s how guys have taken this year, and I think it’s just rallying together and wanting to play for each other. From there on, we just have had fun doing it every single day since, and it’s been a ride. Looking forward to trying to finish it off.
Q: Just a follow-up to what you’ve been saying all week. Sunday turned a corner, Monday felt good. It looked on film yesterday – that we saw – that you looked really good in practice. How are you feeling, and how excited are you for putting on what you do on Sunday?
DM: Yeah, I’m really excited. A chance to play in this game is a dream come true and what you work for all year long. Like I said, I’m not trying to lie to you guys. I’m saying I’m feeling great. I’m feeling great and looking forward to getting out there today. Another day of practice, got one tomorrow and feeling pretty good.
Q: Sort of a two-part. What’s been your favorite part of the week so far, and then when you drill down to the Seahawks defense, what do they do to put stress on you in terms of protecting the ball?
DM: Yeah, favorite part of this week is just being with teammates, just being in the hotel for a week, getting to experience a lot of time. We had the O-line dinner last night, and it’s an experience. You feel like you’re kind of living with your best friends again in college, in training camp, back in high school. You feel like you’re just around your teammates 24-7. It’s something that makes the experience just more special. Then the Seahawks defense, man, they do a great job of playing fast. They swarm to the football. We’ve got to protect it when we’re running, and obviously they play some zone coverage. They’ve got eyes on the quarterback, some tipped balls. I’ve got to make sure I’m being really accurate with the football. Obviously, the rush is – they’ve got good players up front, so I’ve got to be careful in the pocket. They’re good at all three levels. We’ve got a tough challenge. They play really fast, and we’re looking forward to a good challenge.
Q: You told us a lot about your family and the competitive nature, their big-game moments. Do you have a memory or a moment growing up with your brothers that you think prepares you for the pressure of Sunday?
DM: I think just every 2-on-2 basketball game in the backyard probably prepared me for this. Just the joy of it, but also the feeling you get of accomplishing something. Me beating my older brothers or having an opportunity to just compete at a high level, I think, is the best thing. Just watching my older brothers, Luke [Maye], Cole [Maye] and Beau [Maye] just excel in sports growing up and want the ball at the end of the games, always being the player that you felt like if they played well, they won the game. That’s the position I’m in now, and knowing that every game now comes with pressure, and it’s part of this league. Trying to have the confidence in myself and just trusting myself and my teammates that we’re going to get that done.
Q: Drake, UMass Chan [Medical School] Boston and OHSU [Oregon Health and Science University] in Portland are working together to cure a rare fatal disease that’s been terminal for 70 years, and they’re only $2.5 million away from curing it. There’s a friendly competition between Pats nation and The Twelves to see who could raise the most money for this disease called PKAN. What would you say to Pats nation to raise more money than The Twelves?
DM: Oh, any cause, Pats nation, I’m sure they do a great job of supporting. Unfortunate circumstances, as you mentioned, the disease. I know that they’re going to show out, show up. Pushing them to do whatever they can to help somebody out and cure a disease that sounds like is tough. Anything that can change a life, I know Pats nation will be willing to do it.
Q: Two-part question. One, your sweatshirt. What does it mean? And two, how have you helped Josh [McDaniels], and how has Josh helped you?
DM: The sweatshirt is something that in chapel, Mitch [James Mitchell], our chaplain, has been saying, really, all year long, and it’s, ‘Be a blessing.’ Just trying to shine light on others. Spread the word, spread the good news. It’s been a saying we’ve had all year long. So, Nike was kind enough to make some sweatshirts for the guys. We’ve got 30 or 40 guys wearing the sweatshirt around. It’s a cool thing. Then, Josh has meant the world. I think just how he’s come in and shared his knowledge, willing to share his experiences. Even a week like this week where he’s played in this game coming up 10 times, it’s pretty cool how much knowledge he has about the competitive stamina it takes with the longer timeouts, the longer pregame, what it takes for just having, like I said, the stamina to play in this game at a high level, the emotion and all it takes. For me, how have I helped him? I just try to execute his plays to the best of my ability and try to help the guys get on track. I think we’ve done a solid job of that and looking forward to trying to do that one more time.
Q: You and Will Campbell grew really close this season. Other than him protecting your blind side, what is it about him that made you two become fast friends?
DM: I think just like I said, the biggest thing all year long is we were kind of in the same boat. He was a first-round draft pick, left college early, grew up in the South. We’ve got the same Southern accent. He sounds a little more country than I do, but he’s up here living, first time living in the North, probably hadn’t seen snow as much, maybe at all, his entire life. Now, he’s driving in it and little things. So, just trying to find time and find a place for me to welcome him to our team and to the Patriots. I know how huge he has been for us and how big he’ll be for us down the road. So, other than that, he’s always pretty grumpy, but he’s fun. He’s fun to be around. He’s got little sarcasm comments, and he doesn’t take any crap. That’s the biggest thing I like about Will on the field and even off the field. I try to tell him he’s my rook, but he doesn’t go for it. But I’m going to remind him that his whole career.
Q: I’m curious, not just with Will, but the entire rookie class, obviously, on both sides of the ball. Just what have you seen from them this season through their growth and just to be able to now have this experience in the Super Bowl in just one year?
DM: Yeah, I think it’s the ability to adapt quickly. That gives credit to our coaching staff, gives credit to them. TreVeyon [Henderson] coming off a national championship, and now he’s here playing the Super Bowl. So, it’s probably a long season for them. They talk about the rookie wall, and I feel like the biggest thing about those guys is I haven’t seen any break in them at all. They make plays for us every week. Craig Woodson on the defensive side of the ball, [Elijah] Ponder, guys that have made plays all year long. Andy [Borregales] and the special teams. So, guys like that in our rookie class have just showed up week in and week out, and it’s a credit to them because I know last year, how it felt different from college, and now we’re in Week 20-something here. In college, you play 12 games and you’re done, unless you’ve got something after in the postseason. But really, just credit to them for showing up every day, learning the style of a new culture and being in a new environment. Like I said, we’re going to need them big on Sunday, and they’ve showed up every week.
Q: Every coach, in theory, wants their players to respect the staff in the building, but your teammates have mentioned how much Mike Vrabel intentionally tells you all that. What are some examples of times you can think of this year when Vrabes has really sent y’all a message about respecting the staff, not just the coaches and players in the building?
DM: Yeah, one of the first things that comes to mind is, we use rags in the showers. In one of the first meetings, he said, ‘You leave rags in the showers for the equipment guys to come in here. Pick up after yourself.’ He’s not going to wash the rags, and I don’t blame him. Something a little like that. It’s probably a little bit TMI, but little things like that. Picking up after yourself, knowing that somebody else has to pick up after you. Even here with the security, I know a lot of us probably have short tempers and saying, ‘Hey, we play on the team, why do we need a badge around here?’ But in one of the first meetings, he said, ‘Hey, we should have no problems with showing our badges. Everybody’s got to do it.’ Just little things like that, that go a long way of treating other people right, and Coach Vrabel is the best at it. Just giving people credit in the facility that do extra work, trying to give a $100 here, $100 there that Coach Vrabel always says it works out in the long run and it’s bigger for them and how much they do for us.
Q: Hi, Drake. I actually spoke to you last year in London, and that was your second career start back then. How would you reflect on your personal growth from that point until today?
DM: Yeah, that feels like a long while ago, but so many things have changed, and just trying to learn the ins and outs of the league. I still don’t know as much as a lot of people do in here, but you’re trying to figure out what’s at stake and how much work needs to be put in to come up with wins in the win column. That’s the biggest thing of how much work it takes and how much one play here, one play there can change the outcome. From there, on the field, just bouncing back from mistakes, learning that that’s going to happen in this league, and trusting yourself to go make a play the next time is the biggest thing. Then from there, growing one more year with teammates and new teammates, and what a year it’s been with the guys we have in this locker room. I’m so fortunate to have those guys and just looking forward to building something pretty special with them.
Q: You’ve been on a historic run this postseason of playing the best defenses in the league, and they all, schematically, are really different. How did they help you to prepare for this game against the Seahawks defense? It’s really special what they do on the defensive side, especially regarding pass protection, and how do you guys prepare for that?
DM: Yeah, we’ve played some great defenses, some defenses that deserve the credit that they’ve gotten. I think Seattle is just another one of them. They’ve played well all year long. They’re statistically one of the best defenses in the league. I think you see that on film. You see how much effort they play with, how well they play together, how well they’re coached. I think it’s just another chance for us to prove why we belong here, and we just try to keep on going on to the next one. Coach McDaniels warned us that these defenses will just keep getting better and better, and it’s nothing we haven’t seen because Seattle obviously plays at a high level. They’re different players, but we’ve seen some good defenses, and we’re looking forward to another good matchup.
Q: Have you talked to any quarterbacks about what Sunday will be like and how it might be different than any other game you’ve ever played in? If so, what was the best advice you’ve gotten?
DM: Yeah, I think Coach McDaniels has probably been the best with experiencing that. Coaching so many quarterbacks, really just one quarterback in this game for so long and just knowing the emotions of even just running out there the first time and how cool the moment is. But at the same time, how much you’re like, ‘Man, this is it. This is what we’re here for.’ Like I said before in here, Peyton [Manning] reached out to me after Denver and had some good tips about trying to keep my rhythm, my schedule the same. But really, other than that, just trying to do whatever I can, one more time, one more week. We have two weeks of prep and got a couple days here now to do whatever I can in this time to kind of fine tune things, dot the I’s, cross the T’s and get ready for the game.
Q: Morning, Drake. You’ve done a lot of damage this postseason with your legs. Against the Seahawks defense, where they’ve been pretty competitive, negative and positive, against those kinds of plays, how do you walk that line of still wanting to use your mobility, but also wanting to keep your eyes down field and try to extend plays as well?
DM: Yeah, try to remain a passer for as long as I can. On film, it’s tough to pinpoint, ‘Hey, I can maybe use my legs this week.’ It’s kind of something that just comes naturally. That’s the biggest thing for me when I’m back there in the pocket. If I feel like something’s there, I go try to take it and try to play instinctive. That’s what we always say in the offensive room: try to play with instincts and try not to think too much. So, I try not to predetermine or say, ‘Hey, I’m going to take off and run on this one.’ If I feel like there’s a chance for me to make some yards, I’m going to go and try to make them. Then from there, just got to be protecting myself, but I try to remain a passer for as long as I can because those guys are open. Even when they’re not open, they make plays on the football. So, they’ve got a chance to run a lot farther than I can.
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