Drake Maye draws Rodgers comparisons in second NFL season
Drake Maye was nine when he watched Aaron Rodgers beat the Steelers in Super Bowl XLV, after which he studied Rodgers' throwing motion and warmup routine on YouTube. Selected third overall by the Patriots in the 2024 draft, Maye has 1,744 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and two interceptions this season, ranking sixth in passing yards. An NFL coach called his deep pass to Mack Hollins 'Rodgers-like'.
Source
Times of India — Top · read the original report ↗
Desk check · compared with the source
What the desk checked (5)
- Maye has thrown for 1,744 yards with 12 touchdowns and two interceptions, sixth in the league in passing yards. — Figures appear in source; no statistical authority cited.
- A deep ball Maye threw to Mack Hollins was called 'Rodgers-like'. — Attributed to an anonymous NFL coach speaking to The Athletic's Mike Sando.
- Patriots selected Maye third overall in the 2024 draft. — Stated in source without attribution; presented as record fact.
- Rodgers led the Jets past the Patriots 21-14 in Week 3 of 2025, with Maye posting a 102.1 passer rating. — Score and rating appear in source; no source named.
- Maye told Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, 'I'm waiting for the GOAT'. — Quote attributed to a named reporter in the source.
Analysts’ view opinion
Drake Maye's story is more than a feel-good fan-to-starter arc — his second-season numbers suggest genuine development. Sixth in the league with 1,744 passing yards, and 12 touchdowns against just two interceptions, is a 6:1 ratio that points to unusual maturity for a Year 2 quarterback. An opposing coach calling a throw "Rodgers-like" isn't flattery; it's a technical read after watching tape.
- The 12-2 touchdown-to-interception ratio shows Maye is taking shots while still protecting the football — a balance young quarterbacks rarely strike this early.
- The deep ball to Mack Hollins on a 93-yard scoring drive suggests he can stretch the field vertically rather than living on short, safe throws.
- Given the pressure that comes with being the third overall pick of the 2024 draft, this level of production in season two largely validates New England's decision.
- Studying Rodgers down to the grip, release point and warmup routine on YouTube was technical imitation rather than casual fandom — and it is now showing up on Sundays.
- Even so, Rodgers won the Week 3 meeting in 2025, 21-14, and Maye's 102.1 passer rating in defeat is a reminder that experience still closed that game out.
What to watch — The real test is whether Maye can sustain this low interception rate against stronger defences and in high-pressure situations across the rest of the season.
The story does not establish that Maye will ever reach Rodgers' level — it rests on one anonymous coach's comparison and part-season statistics, with no win-loss record or broader team context given.
Deep dive
Research brief · 8 facts · 6 dates · exam-readyThe brief
Context
Drake Maye, the New England Patriots quarterback taken third overall in the 2024 NFL draft, grew up idolising Green Bay-era star Aaron Rodgers after watching Rodgers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV when Maye was nine. He studied Rodgers' throwing motion, grip and pregame warmup routine on YouTube and even carried an Aaron Rodgers phone case. In his second NFL season in 2025, Maye's production has drawn direct "Rodgers-like" comparisons from opposing coaches, while Rodgers, now 41, is winding down what could be his final season. The story frames an unusual passing-of-the-torch arc in which the successor explicitly modelled himself on the veteran.
Key facts
- Maye was nine years old when he watched Aaron Rodgers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV.
- The New England Patriots selected Drake Maye with the third overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft.
- In his second season Maye has 1,744 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and just two interceptions.
- Maye ranks sixth in the NFL in passing yards this season.
- An anonymous NFL coach told The Athletic's Mike Sando that Maye's deep ball to Mack Hollins on a 93-yard scoring drive was 'Rodgers-like'.
- Rodgers' team beat the Patriots 21-14 in Week 3 of the 2025 season, with Rodgers throwing the game-winning touchdown with two minutes left.
- Maye posted a 102.1 passer rating in that Week 3 loss to Rodgers.
- Rodgers threw his first NFL touchdown pass in 2005, when Maye was barely five years old; Rodgers is now 41.
Timeline
- 2005Aaron Rodgers throws his first NFL touchdown pass; Drake Maye is barely five years old.
- Super Bowl XLVRodgers beats the Pittsburgh Steelers; nine-year-old Maye begins obsessively studying his throwing motion and warmups.
- 2024 NFL draftNew England Patriots select Maye with the third overall pick.
- Week 3, 2024 seasonPatriots face the Jets; Maye waits on the field to meet Rodgers, shakes his hand and says, 'Big fan. Best of luck.'
- Week 3, 2025 seasonRodgers beats the Patriots 21-14 with a game-winning touchdown in the final two minutes; Maye finishes with a 102.1 passer rating.
- 2025 season (ongoing)Maye at 1,744 yards, 12 TDs, two interceptions; Rodgers, 41, winding down what could be his final season.
Who has a stake
- Drake Maye — Second-year Patriots quarterback whose statistical rise and 'Rodgers-like' comparisons establish him as a franchise starter.
- Aaron Rodgers — 41-year-old veteran quarterback closing what may be his final season, now a benchmark for the players who studied him.
- New England Patriots — Franchise's return to relevance hinges on the 2024 third overall pick developing into an elite quarterback.
- Mack Hollins — Patriots receiver on the receiving end of the deep pass on a 93-yard scoring drive that triggered the comparison.
- Anonymous NFL coach / The Athletic's Mike Sando — Coaching evaluation reported in the media shapes how Maye's ceiling is publicly assessed.
- New York Jets — Rodgers' Week 3 2024 opponent and the setting of Maye's first meeting with his idol; beat the Patriots 21-14 in Week 3 of 2025.
Why it matters
The story illustrates how modern athletes build skill by deliberately deconstructing a model performer's technique rather than merely admiring them, with video study turning fandom into a training method. It also captures a generational handover at the NFL's most scrutinised position, as a 41-year-old great exits while a 2024 top-three pick begins to deliver on his billing.
UPSC angle
Prelims pointers
- Super Bowl XLV: Aaron Rodgers' team beat the Pittsburgh Steelers; Maye watched at age nine.
- Drake Maye was drafted third overall by the New England Patriots in the 2024 NFL draft.
- Maye's second-season numbers cited: 1,744 passing yards, 12 touchdowns, two interceptions; sixth in the league in passing yards.
- Rodgers threw his first NFL touchdown pass in 2005 and is 41 in the 2025 season.
- Week 3, 2025: Rodgers' side beat the Patriots 21-14; Maye had a 102.1 passer rating.
- 'Passer rating' and 'interception' are core quarterback performance metrics in American football.
Mains framing
The Maye-Rodgers storyline is a case study in deliberate practice and knowledge transfer in elite sport. Maye did not simply idolise Rodgers; he treated him as a curriculum, using freely available YouTube footage to break down grip, release point and warmup routine, an approach made possible by the democratisation of video and analytics access. The measurable outcome is visible: 1,744 yards, 12 touchdowns and two interceptions in his second season, sixth in the league in passing yards, plus a 102.1 passer rating even in a 21-14 defeat to Rodgers in Week 3 of 2025, and a peer evaluation from an anonymous NFL coach calling his deep ball to Mack Hollins 'Rodgers-like'. The implications go beyond one player: it suggests technique-led development, mediated by film study, can compress the learning curve for high draft picks such as a third overall selection. The way forward, as the source indicates, is continued tape-based refinement and low-turnover decision-making, while noting that a single season's numbers and one coach's comparison are not yet proof of sustained elite status; the veteran, at 41, still had the last word on the field.
Key terms
- NFL draft
- Annual selection process through which league teams pick eligible players; Maye went third overall in 2024.
- Super Bowl XLV
- The championship game in which Aaron Rodgers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, watched by a nine-year-old Maye.
- Passer rating
- Composite statistic measuring a quarterback's passing efficiency; Maye recorded 102.1 in the Week 3 2025 loss.
- Interception
- A pass caught by the opposing defence; Maye has thrown only two this season.
- Scoring drive
- A sequence of plays ending in points; Maye's deep pass to Mack Hollins came on a 93-yard scoring drive.
- The Athletic
- Sports publication whose writer Mike Sando reported the anonymous NFL coach's 'Rodgers-like' assessment of Maye.
Practice questions
- How does video-based study of elite performers' technique change athlete development pathways in professional sport? Illustrate with the Drake Maye example.
- Evaluate the risks of evaluating a young quarterback on second-season statistics and peer comparisons. What additional evidence would establish sustained elite performance?
- Discuss the 'passing of the torch' narrative in team sport: what does the Rodgers-Maye case reveal about mentorship, rivalry and generational turnover at high-pressure positions?
Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.