Patriots QB Hoping to Maintain Momentum vs. Saints

FOXBOROUGH, MA. — New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye is clearly a believer in striking while the iron is hot.

In the wake of his team’s impressive 23-20 victory over the Buffalo Bills in Week 5, Maye is using his team captain’s pulpit to preach the importance of maintaining momentum heading to their Week 6 matchup with the New Orleans Saints (1-4) this weekend at the Caesars Superdome.

In fact, the third overall choice by the Pats in the 2024 NFL draft is stressing the need for an even greater performance to earn the win in Week 6.

”It's huge,” Maye said regarding the significance of this weekend’s game. “That one’s [Week 5] in the past; keep going. You’ve got to get back at it this week. It’s huge. It starts with just positive plays. Keep going, get the first first down, and just keep staying ahead of the chains.”

Following a handful of seasons which featured mostly abysmal performances on offense, New England appears poised for a resurgence under the direction of offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and ultimately, head coach Mike Vrabel. New England ranks seventh in the NFL in passing offense, led by Maye and an improved group of pass catchers.

The Pats gained 338 yards of total offense against the Bills in Week 5 — 267 of which came from the passing game, including 13 passing first downs. To Maye’s credit, New England must continue to to keep opposing defenses off rhythm by avoiding the need for big-yardage gains on late-downs. As such, their trips to the red zone are likely to be more effective against the Saints in Week 6.

"I think we've done a good job when we stay ahead of the chains in scoring touchdowns and another emphasis of scoring touchdowns at the red zone,” Maye expressed. “I think we came up short a little bit last week. So, that's kind of a big thing coming into practice. Then from there, get on it tomorrow for third down and just continue to watch them. It's a different opponent. We don't see them much, an NFC team, so just kind of try to get to know them and know that they're at home. They're going to want to play hard and force turnovers.”