Santa Clara, Calif. – As the New England Patriots prepare to face the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium, attention is turning to second-year quarterback Drake Maye and his mobility as a potential key factor against one of the league’s top defenses.
Seattle has been among the best defensive teams this season, ranking near the top in points allowed, total yards, and efficiency per play. The Seahawks are third in passer rating allowed (78.6) and have limited explosive plays on traditional drop-back passes to just 10.8 percent. This makes it difficult for opposing offenses to succeed with standard passing plays.
However, there is evidence that mobile quarterbacks can find success against Seattle. The Seahawks rank 29th in yards per rush allowed to quarterbacks (5.0) and are 16th in efficiency when defending out-of-structure plays such as scrambles. Notably, they have allowed the most passing yards on extended drop-backs (414). Among quarterbacks with high rushing averages, Seattle has only faced Tampa Bay’s Baker Mayfield during the regular season; Mayfield’s team scored 38 points in that matchup.
Drake Maye has used his running ability effectively throughout the postseason, gaining 141 rushing yards over three playoff games—a franchise record for a quarterback in a single postseason. He needs just 30 more rushing yards to enter the top five all-time for quarterback rushing yards in a playoff run.
“On film, it’s tough to pinpoint, ‘Hey, I can maybe use my legs this week.’ It’s kind of something that just comes naturally. That’s the biggest thing for me when I’m back there in the pocket. If I feel like something’s there, I go try to take it and try to play instinctive,” Maye said. “If I feel like there’s a chance for me to make some yards, I’m going to go and try to make them.”
Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels noted that integrating Maye’s athleticism into New England’s offense required adjustments from past systems built around less mobile quarterbacks like Tom Brady.
“It’s an aspect of offensive football that is pretty common now with a lot of QBs you see having success in the NFL and in college. If you’re fortunate enough to have a guy who can do that, it makes all the sense in the world to add that element to your offensive system and put pressure on the defense,” McDaniels said. “It’s been fun for me. I’ve only had a few opportunities in my past to coach guys who really were that way. Cam [Newton] certainly being the most prominent of those, but it’s been a unique experience this year. One that we look forward to continuing.”
McDaniels referenced his experience coaching Cam Newton during Newton’s one-year stint with New England as an example of adapting an offense for a mobile quarterback but emphasized differences between Newton and Maye.
“Cam was a different breed altogether because you could run him between the tackles on quarterback power and those kinds of things because he was 260 pounds. He could really run like a running back,” McDaniels said. “But there are definitely some things that we did in that year that were useful for us this year. That was a really good learning experience for me to listen to Cam that year and talk about things that he had done in the past.
“So, it’s in our playbook. We haven’t used all the things we used with him, but having Thomas [Brown], [Jason Houghtaling], Todd [Downing], Tony [Dews], and these guys that had some mobile quarterbacks in their past and do some of those things has been helpful to us also. We’ve added a lot this year and I still think we’re just scratching the surface on where this is going,” McDaniels continued.
The Patriots have also incorporated more bootleg concepts into their offense under tight ends coach Thomas Brown—who previously worked under Rams head coach Sean McVay—allowing Maye opportunities outside of traditional pocket passing.
One significant moment came during the AFC Championship Game when Maye ran for a first down on third-and-five late in the fourth quarter using a naked bootleg play call—a move credited with helping secure New England’s trip to Super Bowl LX.
“Any time you have a mobile quarterback, using his legs to be able to either extend plays or change the launch point does two things. One, it marries some of the stuff with the run game, which is a big part of it. But it also gives relief downs for the quarterbacks and the offensive line… Being able to get outside the pocket gives the QB an opportunity to get some easy completions and use his legs as well,” Brown said.
With Seattle presenting few weaknesses defensively through conventional means, Sunday’s game may hinge on whether Maye can create opportunities through improvisation or designed runs—potentially providing New England with its edge against one of football’s strongest units.
