Why Stefon Diggs wants 'meaner' Drake Maye to lead Patriots in pursuit of Super Bowl title

Second-year New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye could soon emerge as the Most Valuable Player Award winner for the 2025 regular season. 

Nevertheless, Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs made it known on Wednesday that there's one way he and the team need Maye to improve as 14-3 New England prepares to begin its pursuit of a Super Bowl title. 

Would Patriots benefit from "meaner" Drake Maye leading the offense?

"I wish he was a little bit more meaner at times, but I think that’s probably just being young," Diggs said about Maye, per Chris Mason of MassLive. "He’s playing extremely well, so hopefully he comes into his own as far as his mean side. But he’s a great guy, man. His communication is always there. He’s been a great quarterback. He’s our star. I feel like it’s never too demanding. It’s more so like, 'What you saw right here?' Like, I know what you saw, he knows what you saw, but it’s like, 'What you saw right here?'"

Questions about Maye's leadership style arose after his rookie season, but such talk quieted down as he guided the 2025 Patriots on a 10-game winning streak this past fall. As noted by Pro Football Reference, Maye heads into the playoffs ranked first in the league among qualified players with a 77.2 adjusted QBR, a 113.5 passer rating and a 72.0 percent completion percentage. He's third with 31 passing touchdowns and fourth with 4,394 passing yards. 

That said, Diggs suggested Maye could be more "demanding" in certain instances. 

Drake Maye does a "great job" with delivery

"I wouldn’t say it’s like a demanding thing because I feel like he has great delivery," Diggs added about Maye. "He’ll be like, 'What’d you see right here?' It’s more like an open line of communication with the guys. Not even just me. I’ve seen how he interacts with the other guys. Getting on that same page is big for him. I think at the quarterback position, how you deliver stuff is always important. He does a great job at that."

As of Thursday morning, FanDuel Sportsbook had Maye second among the betting favorites at +160 odds to win the MVP Award. Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams topped the list at -195 odds. 

Also on Thursday, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Patriots as 3.5-point favorites for this Sunday's wild-card playoff game versus the Los Angeles Chargers (11-6) that will be played at New England's Gillette Stadium.