“As a quarterback, you have to know what everyone is doing on the offensive field. It takes extra time, extra preparation, extra questions,” Maye told reporters after practice. “I’m not only trying to find out for myself, but I’m also trying to find out about other people around me. Bring them along as well.”
May noted that the Patriots’ rookies will all be staying in the same hotel for the time being, so they can watch practice footage and prepare for the next day’s practice.
“The best thing about mini-camp is that you get to avoid your friends for the first time. We stay in the hotel together. We watch movies together, we go over the next day’s script together. “I don’t have anything else to do, so why not do it? ‘Football,'” May said.
Maye will be in the playbook with his fellow rookies, as well as giving a glimpse of who will be in his ear from a coaching standpoint. The Pats quarterback spent most of practice working closely with quarterbacks coach TC McCartney and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt. Senior offensive assistant Ben McAdoo was nearby, as was assistant coach Evan Rothstein, arm in arm doing his Ernie Adams-like best.
Mayo also provided insight into who will be primarily responsible for Maye’s development, saying, “We have a group of coaches with quarterback backgrounds, but overall I think it’s going to be AVP when it comes to lead players. Dew,” he added.
Maye spoke from his perspective about his first contact with the Patriots’ revamped offensive coaching staff and explained what each coach brings to the table.
“All three of us have our strengths. TC is the quarterback coach. He talks to us in meetings. Coach Van Pelt is there for us when we need him, and McAdoo The coach is great. He’s seen a lot of coaches.” Great quarterbacks do that. He has old tapes. [Aaron] Rodgers and Eli Manning. They know a lot about football,” May said.
Regarding the new offensive coordinator, May said Van Pelt’s background as a former quarterback helped him early in his pro career.
“He understands that. He’s played that position and coached a lot of quarterbacks, so he understands that. That’s the most desirable thing to see in a coach. I know it’s going to be a growing side, a mental side. So, he’s understanding, but if you’re not doing a great job, he’ll tell you it’s been great so far. “Yes,” May added.
As for his performance in Saturday’s practice, it would be unfair to judge him based on his air routes and three-quarter speed 7-on-7 period. We’re not playing anything close to live football to jump to conclusions.
That being said, Maye and his two rookie receivers came as advertised from an initial eye test standpoint. The rookie quarterback throws catchable balls with zip and touch. His accuracy and timing were decent, but he threw twice, once into the wind, so the receivers got used to the ball (Polk showed off his magnetic hands on one of those throws). He went 5-of-6 on 7-for-7, with Baker and Polk making it. But again, it wasn’t full speed.
May is a well-built, athletic man. And it’s no surprise that the coaching staff spent the majority of practice practicing fundamentals. Primarily, Maye and fellow rookie QB Joe Milton spent a lot of time working with the Pats’ coaches on dropping from under center. After practice, May told reporters he was working on two new stances. One is to start with the shotgun, left foot in front of the right foot, which is an AVP staple, and the other is the under-center footwork, which is newer to all of today’s college QBs.
