There's no sugarcoating how poorly Drake Maye is playing right now. The former UNC football standout, now in his third NFL season, is enduring "junior" struggles.
Through three starts, Maye has one touchdown pass and seven turnovers. Maye only surpassed 200 yards once, during a 20-3 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers
in Week Two, while completing just 56 percent of his passes during Sunday's blowout loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.The New England Patriots are just 1-2, which naturally creates questions. During a recent press conference, an "unnamed source" asked New England head coach Mike Vrabel if there's any tension between him and Maye.
“Unnamed sources," Vrabel asked. "Let me just tell you why I’m here. I’m here because Drake was the quarterback.
Believe it or not, I had choices to where I wanted to coach. I wanted to coach here because Drake was the quarterback. I don’t have much really other to add to that about a comment from an unnamed source. But I’ll just tell you what I’ve told numerous people that are going to ask me why I’m here.”
#Patriots HC Mike Vrabel on a local report that there’s an issue between him and Drake Maye:
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) September 30, 2026
“Unnamed sources? Let me just tell you why I’m here. I’m here because Drake was the QB. Believe it or not, I had choices to where I wanted to coach. I wanted to coach here because Drake… https://t.co/DBlq4wguKC pic.twitter.com/qiZ9ivkOjh
Every good quarterback is bound to struggle at some point in his career. Maye competed with Matthew Stafford for NFL MVP honors a season ago, cementing himself as the Pats' franchise QB with over 4,300 passing yards and 31 touchdowns.
After winning ACC Rookie and Player of the Year honors in 2022, Maye's production dipped a bit in 2023. This didn't deter NFL teams, with New England selecting Maye third overall in the 2024 NFL Draft.
There's obviously no tension between Vrabel and his star quarterback, whose next test comes Sunday at the undefeated, AFC East-leading Buffalo Bills.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: Drake Maye's head coach answers stupid question about internal rift
