Patriots QB Drake Maye explains where he's at with Josh McDaniels' offense

Second-year quarterback Drake Maye is in a tough position this offseason with the New England Patriots.

On one hand, he's got a fresh start. Jerod Mayo lasted only one season as head coach, but that has given way to Mike Vrabel — a New England legend and a good coach — as the new shot-caller for the Patriots.

Speaking of calling the shots, Vrabel brought back a familiar name to run his offense. Say what you will of Josh McDaniels as a head coach, he has, almost, always been successful as an offensive coordinator, especially with the Patriots.

Those are all good things. The bad is that Maye is a young quarterback coming off a tough rookie season, and he's already on his second head coach and offensive coordinator.

Sure, Vrabel and McDaniels are big names in New England, but they're new coaches for Maye. He not only has to get to know a new head coach, but he has to learn a new offensive scheme.

That's what makes this offseason so important for Maye and the Patriots, and so far, the young quarterback seems to be feeling okay about what he's been able to accomplish in McDaniels' scheme.

"I think we're catching the stride; I think I'm starting to find a stride," Maye said on Monday after a mandatory minicamp practice, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN. "I'm bummed out we're about to leave, but it's fun."

The next step for Maye will be taking offseason strides and turning them into regular season wins, but its one step at a time in the NFL.

Alongside growing as a quarterback, the Patriots are also looking for Maye to grow as a leader. He's only 22 and he's playing for an organization with massive expectations and history. 

The good news is that Vrabel and the Patriots don't need Maye to be Tom Brady, though. They just need him to be himself and to use whatever unique voice he has as a leader.

"I think it's a unique position being 22, so I think there is a lot of room to grow," Vrabel said of Maye's leadership abilities. "I think there's a lot of natural leadership qualities. I have to encourage him and to put him in those positions to do that."

Maye threw for 2,276 yards and 15 touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions as a rookie. The Pats went 4-13.