Timeline of The Patriots From Tom Brady to Drake Maye
Editor Zachary Myers says, “Maye has made a big play seemingly in every game, has always shown up when it mattered most and kept a cool head throughout the tough times, both this season and last season” (https://www.flickr.com/photos/masey/46969020501/sizes/c/).
2/26/2026
Zachary Myers, Editor
On January 4th, 2020, Tom Brady played his final game as a New England Patriot. It was an unceremonious end for the six time super bowl champion, as the Patriots lost at home in the wild card round to the Tennessee Titans 20-13, with Brady’s last pass of his career being a pick six to former teammate Logan Ryan that sealed their fate. Aside from a random wild card appearance in 2021, the Patriots would be in purgatory, unseen since the 1980s and early 1990s. During this stretch between 2020 and 2024, fans would have to suffer through a washed up Cam Newton, terrible play from their original supposed savior Mac Jones and spot backup starts from guys like Bailey Zappe and Jacoby Brissett. But it would be two specific moments in these years of purgatory that would lead the Patriots to the unexpected rise they have found themselves in during the 2025 season.
The first of these moments was Chad Ryland missing a game tying field goal against the Giants in 2023, which allowed the Patriots to move into position for the third overall pick. The second moment, and really the catalyst for the rebuild, was a week eighteen loss to the New York Jets, which was the first time the Patriots had lost to the Jets in fifteen contests. At the time, this game signified the lowest point the Patriots had been in decades, finishing 4-13 and having their legendary head coach Bill Belichick fired days later. Fast forward to the 2024 NFL Draft, two of the five highly touted quarterbacks from the class, Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels, are taken number one and two respectively, leaving New England the options of Drake Maye, JJ McCarthy and Michael Penix Jr with the third pick. They would end up choosing Maye, who attended the University of North Carolina, and while the next season did not show immediate promise, there were definitely signs.
Maye’s first start came in week five of 2024 against the Texans and while the Patriots lost, Maye showed his future prowess with 242 passing yards and three touchdowns. The end of season results did not look pretty on paper, with the Patriots finishing 4-13 and having their coach Jerod Mayo fired, a mirror of 2023. But there were signs of what was to come, as Maye threw for an efficient 2,276 yards on a 66.6% completion percentage and showed a surprising rushing ability. In the offseason, New England would go to work to build around Maye, drafting multiple new offensive players. This included star runningback Treveyon Henderson out of Ohio State and left tackle Will Campbell out of LSU, who said after he got drafted, “I’m gonna fight and die to protect him with everything I’ve got” (nflanalysis.net, 2025). They also hired former Titans coach Mike Vrabel, who got fired from Tennessee after consecutive losing seasons.
Flash forward to January 2026, the Patriots have surpassed any expectations that people would have had for them. They played the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 60, and Maye finished as the runner up in the MVP race with totals of 4,394 passing yards and 31 touchdowns. Vrabel has also rapidly changed the culture, making the team more player focused and giving his young guys a lot more freedom. This shift in culture and play led the Patriots to a 14-3 record, including a ten game winning streak starting with a surprising upset against the Bills in Buffalo. Throughout the season and even continuing through the playoffs, multiple NFL analysts, particularly on ESPN, have been critical of the Patriots mainly because of their seemingly easy schedule. While this is true, not a lot of teams can say they get the job done as well as the Patriots have. Maye has made a big play seemingly in every game, has always shown up when it mattered most and kept a cool head throughout the tough times, both this season and last season. He has also made every one of his teammates better, especially Kayshon Boutte and Demario Douglas, who while ok before, have transformed into his most reliable targets. While the future cannot be predicted after just one year, the Patriots have a bright future ahead of them if Maye can play at this level for the next few years.
