During a recent appearance on "Up & Adams," Alexander spoke about picking the Seahawks to walk out with the Lombardi Trophy, but made sure to send a message to his former team about not overlooking a key aspect of the Patriots, despite the ongoing narrative surrounding the roster: the offense. While defending Drake Maye's performance in the playoffs, Alexander also reminded the Seahawks not to overlook the quarterback's position and not to take the Patriots' offense for granted, even though that is the current trend.
The New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl. In an amazing turn of events from two disastrous 4-13 seasons under two different former coaches, Robert Kraft finally hired Mike Vrabel. In one magical offseason, he engineered a transformation for the ages, turning an NFL frog into a prince by reaching the Super Bowl. Vrabel and his young quarterback, Drake Maye, beat all the odds, and owner Robert Kraft can again stake a claim to being the best owner in the NFL.
Stafford led the NFL in passing yards (4,707), touchdowns (46) and touchdown-interception radio (5.8), giving him 313 more passing yards and 15 more touchdowns than Maye. Stafford's 2025 season was the eighth time in NFL history that a quarterback threw for at least 4,500 yards and 45 touchdowns, according to ESPN Research. Six of the previous seven quarterbacks to do so won MVP. The only player who didn't was the Saints' Drew Brees in 2011, as Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers also reached those thresholds
He's gay, she's gay, I'm gay, we're all gay for Maye! Throughout the 2025 NFL season, New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye has led his team to victory after victory, snagging them a spot in the upcoming Super Bowl 60. Naturally, the (mostly heterosexual) Boston football fans yearned for a catchy and viral slogan to support the 23-year-old hotshot. So, they searched the depths of their imagination, realized what word his last name rhymed with, and "Gay for Maye" was born.
The impressive second-year jump of Drake Maye has been a consistent topic among Patriots fans this season, as few expected he would be as successful as he has been so early in his career. Although many predicted he would improve on his rookie year, the level he's at already, at just 23 years old, rivals some of the best second seasons by notable quarterbacks in NFL history.
No, ESPN does not hate the Patriots. Wait, check that for a second. Rex Ryan definitely hates the Patriots. Give him some grace on that. The man coached the Jets for six years. You have no idea what that does to the soul. Some might also add Cam Newton to the Patriot Haters Club, since he seems to have a terrible take on something going on in Foxborough every time he appears on "First Take" or its ilk.
What New England need to do to win: Clean up their act. Last week against the Houston Texans, Drake Maye was blindsided too often by edge rushers Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter. The pair wreaked havoc, sacking Maye five times and forcing him into three of his four fumbles. The Los Angeles Chargers also forced two from him in the wildcard round. Denver led the league in sacks (68) in the regular season, and will be intent on causing similar damage on Sunday.
A bonus was that they snatched him from Buffalo, where virtually every 2024 catch he made was either a first down or a touchdown. That hurt the Bills in a classic case of addition and subtraction. The big receiver continued his big-play ways for the Patriots in 2025. He notched 46 receptions for 550 yards, two touchdowns, and 28 first downs. He's also the Patriots' biggest wide receiver at 6'4" and 221 pounds. That creates matchup nightmares for any defensive back, especially shorter ones.
Patriots fans might not like who Joe Buck compared Drake Maye to, but the "Monday Night Football" play-by-play announcer tossed some pretty high praise the New England quarterback's way. Buck compared Maye to Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning in the most recent episode of NBC Sports Boston's "Next Pats Podcast." While Maye and Manning don't have similar playing styles, Buck believes he's like the former Patriots rival due to the way he carries himself.
However, if the Patriots are unsuccessful, a look back at their season will show that may not be that big of a problem. Maye has been sacked a lot this season, but that hasn't stopped him from leading New England to a lot of wins. Drake Maye and Patriots still find success when sacked a lot Typically, when a quarterback is on the ground a lot, it's a disastrous game for their team.