Merril Hoge is clearly not a big Drake Maye fan. The NFL analyst recently spoke to Henry Lake of WCCO and said that the former North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback is worth a top-five pick.
“Drake Maye is the kind of player that will get you fired,” Hoge said, per Athlon Sports. “Especially if you draft him in the top five or top three, he’s going to get you fired.”
Hoge went on to say that he compares Maye to Malik Willis of the Tennessee Titans. “Willis might be the only guy that I can think of that is as erratic as Maye,” Hodge said. “I studied him for two years…I watched every one of his games last year. …His last game against [North Carolina State] was probably the most embarrassing display I’ve seen from a guy who is supposed to be an elite franchise quarterback. …He’s erratic. He’s everywhere.”
In 2022, Maye threw for 4,321 yards, 38 touchdonws and seven interceptions with a completion percentage of 66.2. In 2023, Maye’s numbers dropped to 3,608 yards, 24 touchdowns and nine interceptions with a 63.6 completion percentage. Maye did not have offensive coordinator Phil Longo last season as he left for Wisconsin. He also didn’t have wide receiver Tez Walker for the first four games of the season due to an eligibility issue.
Should Drake Maye sit for one year?
The interesting thing about Hoge’s comments is he isn’t the only one to be critical of Maye. Despite having Maye selected No. 3 overall in his latest mock draft, Mel Kiper Jr. of ESPN said the young quarterback should sit for one year before taking the field in the NFL.
“I think Drake with another year at North Carolina, I think he would have taken off because he did have games late in the year where we know about the accuracy and the precise passing was off,” Kiper said on ESPN First Draft. “Even the Pro Day, he missed a couple throws early, but they got in a rhythm and he was lights out.”
Maye spoke to reporters at his Pro Day and said he was pleased with his performance. “I thought I threw well. I thought I was spinning it great,” Maye said. “There’s a few [throws] I wish I had back. Always, when you have 70 throws, you’re gonna miss a few. That was the goal, to be perfect.
“At the end of the day, I didn’t accomplish that, but I thought I threw it well. I think the guys did a great job and just tried to show different things. Move on the run, different drops and just throwing on the backfoot.”
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