Maye/Boutte connection helps lift the Patriots past the Saints

"The road to success is always under construction." 

Who said that? Frost? Keats? Angelou? 

Wrong. It was Mike Vrabel during his pre-game chat on 98.5. The Patriots' head coach was speaking about his team's recent run of success, which continued in New Orleans on Sunday. While far from perfect - Vrabel the soothsayer? - the Pats are finding out they have a quarterback capable of erasing mistakes.

"I'm not surprised," Pop Douglas (long TD) said. "I know what he can do. He's been ballin' and he's been doing his thing. That confidence is growing. I'm proud of him."

We can quibble about whether or not Drake Maye has truly arrived (that word generated a lot of conversation this week), but what is inarguable is how well the second-year pro has played since an uneven opener. He was at it again in the Superdome, recording a perfect passer rating in the first half, then helping to seal the win late with a 3rd-and-11 conversion to Kayshon Boutte, who also had a hell of a homecoming in his return to the Bayou (5 catches, 93 yards, two touchdowns).

"We work on it every day at practice. Before practice. After practice," Boutte said of that play, and in particular, his connection with Maye. "So I mean, as long as we trust in each other, anything is possible."

"Him (Maye) knowing where he wants to go with it, and that timing, putting it in a spot where KB can make a play," noted Vrabel. 

Maye finished with 261 yards and three scores, while losing another 113 yards and a touchdown thanks to a pair of offensive pass interference calls on Stefon Diggs (the first was nonexistent and the second was softer than the Pillsbury Doughboy). 

What's just as impressive, though, is how quickly Maye has matured mentally. Oh, we saw the processing last year, but it was pockmarked by those YOLO moments that were still popping up in week three of this season. But since? It's been one right decision after another, even on plays when he's throwing the ball away. At 23 years old, the Pats haven't been afraid to put the ball in his hands and let him do the right thing with it. Maye's not disappointing. 

"Just making good decisions," Maye said. "I think it's just trying to prove it over and over again, you know, be consistent with that. Be known to be smart with the football."

"I think he trusts all of us," observed Boutte. "I think that's the biggest thing in an efficient offense. A quarterback trusting his receivers to make plays. And sometimes when we're not open and when the coverage is cloudy, he makes plays himself, too. We trust that he can run with the ball and get the first, and he did get a couple of firsts in critical situations. So just trusting each other can go a long way."

Boutte has undoubtedly earned his spot at the table. He had a critical catch in Buffalo to set up the game-winning field goal, and in this one, in front of 40 family and friends, made some magic. The third-year pro reeled in a 25-yarder for a score late in the first quarter, powering his way through contact to get into the end zone. Then hit paydirt again right before the half, winning a jump ball in the end zone against the Saints' top cornerback, Kool-Aid McKinstry. 

"I grew up two hours from here. I've never really been to a Saints game either, so it's like, really my first game here. So it was all cool," said Boutte, who flashed in his freshman year at LSU but then faded. "I would say three, four years ago, I wasn't in the best position. You know, think a lot of off-the-field stuff. I kind of look at myself like I've been through a lot. I feel like I'm finally getting it back together and everything is coming up good. So, you know, feel like it's good to beat the adversity..."

"I think he factored, and certainly came up huge at the end," Vrabel said. "I think he's gotten better and just, his demeanor - never too up, never too down. Sometimes, the ball finds him, and he makes the plays. And when it doesn't, understands that it wasn't his snap. ...I hope he can enjoy this for a few minutes with his family and whoever was down and around here. Just a big play for him."

It was a big win for the team, coming off the upset in Buffalo. They handled success. That said, the results have not deluded Vrabel, nor his quarterback. The process still matters, and what the Pats are today is not what they can be with more time on task as a group and more experience for this young core. However, to string together wins and navigate a historically soft schedule is a testament to what they're building in Foxborough. Week by week, they are pulling themselves out of nowheresville and back into the conversation. They have four wins - matching their season totals in both 2023 and 2024. Asked for his thoughts on that, Maye didn't hesitate.

"Just go get win number 5."