FOXBOROUGH — Quarterbacks are natural leaders on the football field.
They speak in the huddle, determine when the ball is snapped, and ultimately control where the football goes. In the midst of an MVP-caliber season, the leadership style of 23-year-old Drake Maye has drawn increasing attention. When asked whether Maye is demanding of his teammates, Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs pulled the curtain back.
"I wouldn't say it's like a demanding thing because I feel like he has great delivery," Diggs said. "He'll be like, 'What'd you see right here?' It's more like an open line of communication with the guys. Not even just me, I've seen how he interacts with the other guys. Getting on that same page is big for him. I think at the quarterback position, how you deliver stuff is always important. He does a great job at that.
"I wish he was a little bit more meaner at times, but I think that's probably just being young. He's playing extremely well, so hopefully he comes into his own as far as his mean side. But he's a great guy, man. His communication is always there. He's been a great quarterback. He's our star. I feel like it's never too demanding. It's more so like, 'What you saw right here?' Like, I know what you saw, he knows what you saw, but it's like, 'What you saw right here?'"
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It's a similar leadership style to another Maye — Drake's father, Mark. A quarterback at North Carolina who had a brief stint with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , Mark Maye told MassLive how he felt about leadership last spring. It sounds like that had an impact on Drake Maye .
"Sometimes you have to maybe get on guys, but I never really was a big proponent of a lot of yelling," the elder Maye said. "I know when I was coming along I always appreciated guys really being positive with me and encouraging me. So I've always tried to pass that along simply because that's what I liked as a player.
"I know that there are certainly some times (to yell if players) aren't putting out the effort, but listen, we're all trying to catch the ball. We're all trying to hang onto the ball. We're all trying to throw a complete pass. We aren't trying not to do those things. But sometimes you're going to miss a throw. Sometimes a ball might be dropped. Those things happen."
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