Drake Maye ‘absolutely getting better’ in final stretch of Patriots training camp

FOXBORO — Drake Maye’s late-summer ascent continued in the Patriots’ final training camp practice of the summer.

Maye has been on an upward trajectory since the Patriots’ joint practice with the Eagles last Tuesday. He out-played starter Jacoby Brissett in the Patriots’ preseason loss to the Eagles and has now strung together three more straight impressive practices.

Maye was 8-of-11 overall in Monday’s practice and 5-of-8 in 11-on-11 drills. His best series came during 7-on-7s, when he hit wide receiver Jalen Reagor on an intermediate curl, wideout K.J. Osborn on a deep corner route and then fired the ball in to Osborn on a hitch in the middle of the field.

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Head coach Jerod Mayo has seen Maye’s confidence grow since Thursday’s preseason game.

“Absolutely. He made some good throws, and I would say his teammates can see that confidence growing as well,” Mayo said. “Hopefully, it’s just an upward trajectory from here.”

Mayo attributed Maye’s improvement to his “hard work and dedication to his craft.” Mayo repeated the cliches about Maye and how the young QB arrives early and leaves late. He also credited his assistant coaching staff.

“I would also say the coaches have done a good job meeting with him one-on-one, making sure that he’s comfortable with his team play,” Mayo said. “He’s absolutely getting better.”

None of this means Maye will start Week 1 against the Bengals, however. Mayo still isn’t ready to name a starter between Maye and Brissett.

The Patriots have taken a conservative approach with Maye so far in the QB’s first training camp. He has yet to take a first-team rep in practice and is just starting to see snaps with some starting offensive linemen. Mayo said it’s “very important” to get Maye reps with the Patriots’ starters before they’re ready to name him the starter. Maye has played with the starting offensive line in games. The Patriots still have just under three weeks to get him reps with the top O-line in practice before Week 1.

Mayo also said the Patriots are willing to tweak their plan for Maye if necessary.

“We always have to be flexible in regard to the plan. Right now, it’s all going the right way, the right direction, and hopefully it continues to get better,” Mayo said.

The head coach won’t get into the specifics of that plan with Maye, but offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt is set to speak to the media for the first time since camp opened before Thursday’s practice.

“I’m not going to get too much into the plan, but at the core, that was just the extra work,” Mayo said. “We talked about the different tools that we have, and all the quarterbacks are really taking advantage of that. Whether it’s the virtual reality, the extra walk-through time, or the meetings by themselves. They’re just doing all of that extra stuff that’s really paying dividends.”

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