Curran: Maye's Play Is Helping ‘infuse' Patriots Wrs With Confidence

Curran: Maye's play is helping ‘infuse' Patriots WRs with confidence originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Drake Maye is building confidence by showcasing it.

The Patriots second-year quarterback is playing far and away the best football of his young career. He hasn’t turned the ball over in three weeks. He’s been incredibly efficient and made clutch throws in difficult moments. And, ultimately, it’s resulted in stellar performances from Stefon Diggs, Kayshon Boutte and DeMario Douglas.

Patriots insider Tom E. Curran believes Maye’s style and level of play is rubbing off on his wide receivers.

“Remember when Tom Brady would look at his group of receivers and say, ‘I’m not throwing to you?'” Curran questioned on Early Edition on Monday night. “Sometimes it’d be drafted players. Aaron Dobson and Brandon Tate never amounted to anything because Tom didn’t trust them, but he’d take a guy like Kenbrell Thompkins and say, ‘You know what, I don’t care where he came from. He catches the ball. I’m gonna throw it to him.’

“These guys, I think Maye infuses them with a different kind of confidence,” Curran continued. “He probably has a different bedside manner than Brady, but they feel confident enough and he goes back to them. And few of these guys are not rewarding him with the plays when he does go to them.”

Maye has thrown for the sixth-most passing yards in the NFL despite ranking 22nd attempts through six weeks. Diggs and Boutte now lead the team in receiving, a simple yet noteworthy development after tight end Hunter Henry headlined the pass-catching group before Diggs’ breakout. Douglas is coming off his best performance of the season, as well.

Patriots insider Phil Perry agreed with Curran. Maye’s confidence in himself and pass-catchers is helping get the most out of the group.

“They do have their own physical skill sets that make them useful NFL players,” Perry said. “Kayshon Boutte, for instance, he’s really nobody’s idea of a burner but you can use him down the field because he’s tremendous in contested catch situations. He has really strong hands and he has great body control.

“What you need to leverage those physical skills, though, is a quarterback who’s willing to throw you the ball when you are covered because you’re not Mr. Separation,” Perry continued. “Drake Maye, to me, has already shown that he really trusts these guys and he’s willing to push the ball down the field to just about any of them. It doesn’t matter. And that, to me, is a positive trait for him to have. Especially at this stage of his career.”

Maye’s confidence is permeating through the locker room and, after three consecutive wins, the rest of New England.