The Mike Vrabel-coached New England Patriots have become one of the NFL’s most surprising teams as they sit atop the AFC East with a dominant 13-3 record. This single-season transformation from a 4-13 team into a Super Bowl contender has been led by a stellar sophomore performance from QB1 Drake Maye. Addressing this growth and the strides made by Maye as a leader, coach Vrabel issued a strong statement about his quarterback.

“You start to see each and every day his spirit, his passion, his energy, his leadership, how much he puts into this, the excitement that he has for everybody on the football team when they have success,” Vrabel said. “He’s into this…he’s supporting every single guy. I think his maturity has grown extremely high since I first met him in January or whenever it was.”

With these comments, the QB has fulfilled the challenges put in front of him ahead of the 2025-26 season by Mike Vrabel. The Patriots’ head coach wanted the young quarterback to take up more responsibility as the leader of the team.

“The expectation is that he’s leading this football team,” Vrabel said during a radio interview on WEEI in August. “That’s what the job of the head coach and the quarterback is. That’s pretty much how this thing goes. And that he can’t take days off.”

Since then, the 23-year-old has grown on each front. In 16 games, Maye has thrown for 4,203 yards, 30 touchdowns, and eight interceptions with 409 rushing yards and four rushing scores. These near-MVP numbers have transformed New England’s offense into one of the best as the Patriots rank fourth in total offense and fifth in scoring, averaging 28.3 points per game.

Drake Maye’s growth into a resilient leader with the New England Patriots shouldn’t surprise anyone, as the 23-year-old has strived in these high-stakes roles throughout his playing career. Be it his time at the University of North Carolina, where he was a team captain and led the Tar Heels from a promising team to a major contender.

However, these leadership qualities weren’t built overnight. Rather, they continue to develop on the foundation created from the lessons he learned from his father, who played a pivotal role in his football career.

How Drake Maye’s father shaped him into a great leader

As Drake Maye grew up in a sporting household, he was surrounded by great athletes. His father, Mark Maye, was a quarterback for the Tar Heels, his mother, Aimee Maye a high school athlete, and his three older brothers—Luke, Cole, and Beau all excelled in college sports at North Carolina, with Luke and Cole winning national championships in basketball and baseball, respectively.

Hence, being competitive and performing at the highest level wasn’t a problem for young Drake; rather, he had to improve on being a leader. He developed these skills by internalizing a message his father had shared with him as he started his footballing career with the Junior Eagles Football Association.

“‘Listen, Drake, you’ve got ‘em. When we get in the huddle, encourage them,” Mark Maye said. “‘Say some things.’ Nothing earth-shattering, but always really encouraged him be a leader.”

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This message has stayed with Drake Maye throughout his career and has borne fruit as the 23-year-old hopes to lead the Patriots to their first deep playoff run since the days of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick after a dominant season.