It might be time to get rid of the word young when describing New England quarterback Drake Maye.
Oh, the Patriots QB is still just 23 years old. It’s just that he’s no longer a good, young quarterback — he’s just a good quarterback, a real good quarterback.
Maye, head coach Mike Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels have the Patriots on top of the AFC East and just a game back of the equally surprising Indianapolis Colts for the AFC’s top seed.
The second-year quarterback out of North Carolina has had an MVP-type first half. Through eight games, Maye has completed 75.2 percent of his passes, which if he keeps at that pace would set an NFL record. The current mark is 74.4 set by New Orleans’ Drew Brees in 2018.
Maye’s league-best quarterback rating is 118.7. How good is that? It would be the best in Patriots history. Yes, Patriots history. Tom Brady’s best rating ever was 117.2 in 2007.
Going into Sunday’s game against Atlanta, and the league’s top-ranked pass defense, Maye has thrown for 200 yards and has had a passer rating of at least 100 in seven straight games. Only three quarterbacks have had longer streaks — Aaron Rodgers with 12 in 2011 and eight in 2020, Brady with eight in 2007 and Peyton Manning with eight in 2004.
Rodgers, Brady, and Manning — that’s a pretty good neighborhood for Maye to occupy.
MVP Talk
If Maye isn’t the early leader for MVP, then maybe it’s Colts running back Jonathan Taylor.
A non-quarterback as MVP hasn’t happened since Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson won the award in 2012. And if Saquon Barkley didn’t win it last year, then Taylor has a tough road to the award.
Still, Taylor in eight games has rushed for 850 yards and 12 touchdowns. Add in his 256 receiving yards and two more touchdowns, and he’s making a tough case for himself.
Two-Way Travis
Here’s how Jacksonville’s Travis Hunter has split his time on both offense and defense so far this year for the Jaguars.
Through seven games, as the Jags travel to Las Vegas Sunday, Hunter has played in 459 of the team’s 885 plays, or 52 percent.
He’s played 305 snaps on offense as a wide receiver (67 percent of the team’s snaps) and 154 on defense (36 percent) as a cornerback.
As far as production, Hunter has caught 28 passes for 298 yards with a touchdown (8-101-1 came last week). Defensively, he’s made 15 tackles and has three pass breakups.
Caught in the Draft
Just about halfway through the season, here’s how the top 10 picks of the 2026 NFL Draft would look:
- Jets, 2. Saints, 3. Titans, 4. Browns, 5. Dolphins, 6. Giants, 7. Cardinals, 8. Raiders, 9. Ravens, 10. Commanders.
NFC North Battle
Minnesota visits Detroit Sunday, where the Vikings are 0-4 the past four years. The Lions have also beaten the Vikings five straight times, which is their longest winning streak against their division rival since the first five times they played them (1961-63).
Lions quarterback Jared Goff has all five of the wins, and in those five wins, he has averaged 31.2 points, completed 76.3 percent of his passes, thrown nine touchdowns to just two interceptions, and has a QB rating of 113.5.
D vs. D
One of the best games of this week will be the Houston Texans hosting the Denver Broncos — especially if you like defense.
Houston, despite a 3-4 record, leads the league in both points allowed per game and yards allowed per game. Denver ranks fifth in both categories. The Broncos lead the league in sacks, while the Texans are third in turnovers.
So yeah, with all that said, the score will probably be 37-34.
And No D
Then there’s the Cincinnati Bengals defense, which ranks last in the league in points allowed per game, yards allowed per game, rushing yards allowed per game, and are 30th in passing yards allowed per game.
Also, according to Next Gen Stats, the Bengals lead the league with 94 missed tackles.
Game of the Week
Buffalo will host Kansas City in a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship Game Sunday in the national 4:25 game.
The Bills have beaten the Chiefs the last four times the two have met in the regular season. However, the Chiefs have won the last four times the two have met in the playoffs.
Happy Birthday and Maybe More
Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love will celebrate his 27th birthday Sunday when the Packers host Carolina.
If you’re into this kind of numbers thing, Bart Starr, Brett Favre, and Aaron Rodgers all won the NFL Championship for the Packers the year they turned 27.
