Former Patriots safety shares how OC Alex Van Pelt can help Drake Maye succeed

Former New England Patriots safety Duron Harmon is among those who believe New England offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt is an ideal coach for rookie quarterback Drake Maye.

Harmon spent time with the Cleveland Browns this past season when Van Pelt served as that club's OC.

"He was very well organized," Harmon said about Van Pelt during the latest edition of the "Eye on Foxborough" podcast, as shared by Karen Guregian of MassLive. "They had a plan and you could see how the plan would formulate at the beginning of the week and, you know, throughout the week. He did a good job of getting the guys ready."

The Patriots hired Van Pelt in February before they signed veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett in March. Brissett made 11 starts in Van Pelt's offense with Cleveland during the 2022 season and seemingly holds a lead over Maye regarding a competition for the New England starting job that's expected to run through at least a portion of the preseason.

New England generated headlines last week when the club signed running back Rhamondre Stevenson to a four-year contract extension worth $36M with $17M fully guaranteed. For a piece published on June 20, Mike Reiss of ESPN pointed out that Van Pelt "plans to feature wide-zone runs that Stevenson said he has spent time studying this offseason."

Van Pelt is hoping that Stevenson and free-agent signing Antonio Gibson will help make life easier for either Brissett or Maye this coming September.

"They’re gonna run that football," Harmon added about a Van Pelt offense that featured star running back Nick Chubb in Cleveland, "and, you know, any time you have a younger quarterback like Drake Maye, you always want to give him the keys to be able to run the football so that when it’s his time to throw the ball, it’s not as much pressure."

It was suggested as recently as earlier this week that "the Patriots would be fine seeing what Maye can do over a 17-game season" if the first-year pro emerges as the club's best quarterback during the preseason. 

Harmon sounds confident Van Pelt can have Maye ready to go for New England's Week 1 game at the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 8.