Just as the Bears’ hopes for turning their season around ride on the potential improvement of quarterback Caleb Williams, the Patriots could get significantly better in a hurry if Drake Maye makes a leap.
As the No. 1 and No. 3 draft picks, respectively, face off at Soldier Field on Sunday, one concern for the Bears is Maye’s unpredictability. That makes him dangerous for a defense that’s already reeling.
He’s so early in his career — this will be his fifth start — that there’s no telling what he’s figured out and what he hasn’t. If some things start clicking for him, the Patriots suddenly will be tougher than their 2-7 record suggests, and that could happen at any moment.
Well, almost any moment, according to the Bears.
“It’s going to have to be against some other team—that’s all I know,” cornerback Kyler Gordon said. “Our plan is to lock [stuff] up and handle business.”
While they’re unlikely to see each other often, Williams and Maye always will be linked as part of the epic 2024 quarterback class that saw an unprecedented six of them go in the top 12 picks. Being in opposite conferences never stopped Mitch Trubisky’s career from being measured against Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson.
They never played each other in college when Williams was at USC and Maye was at North Carolina, but grew up in the same region — Williams is from Washington, D.C. and Maye grew up outside Charlotte, N.C. — and have known each other through camps over the years. Williams called him a “good guy, country dude and a competitor.”
Maye said the two are friends and he has “enjoyed watching him do his thing” with the Bears.
“The play is never over with Caleb,” he said.
Debates about the 2024 class will be long-running. The immediate concern for the Bears, who are at risk of slipping below .500 if they suffer an upset, is discerning exactly what Maye is at this point.
Like any rookie, Maye has been all over the place since taking over for veteran Jacoby Brissett. For the season, he has completed 65.6 percent of his passes, averaged 154 yards, thrown six touchdown passes and four interceptions and compiled an 85.1 passer rating.
He also has a brawny running style, similar to the Bills’ Josh Allen, at 6-foot-4, 225 pounds and has 209 yards rushing (10 per carry) and a touchdown.
“He’s not looking to slide,” Bears defensive coordinator Eric Washington said. “He’s got tremendous size and speed. He’s decisive. That’s just tough.”
In his return from a concussion last week, Maye completed 29 of 41 passes for 206 yards with a touchdown pass and two interceptions for 69.8 passer rating in a 20-17 overtime loss to the Titans. His touchdown pass was on the final play of regulation to tie the game.
Two games before that, Maye had his best performance of the season with a 109.7 passer rating on 26-of-37 passing for 276 yards with a touchdown.
“His rhythm and timing is good, he’s accurate, he’s got the ability to throw the ball down the field, got good vision,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “I’m impressed.”
Maye never impressed the Bears enough to sway them from drafting Williams, however. General manager Ryan Poles was set on Williams early and didn’t host any of the other five for pre-draft visits at Halas Hall.
There was never much doubt from anyone that Williams was bound to go first, followed by reigning Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels to the Commanders and Maye to the Patriots. But Maye isn’t going to simply accept that he’s behind those two and said getting a shot at one of the quarterbacks drafted ahead of him adds “a little extra” to this game.