Patriots Rumors: Drake Maye Seen as 'Close-to-Ideal Fit' amid NFL Draft Trade Buzz

Don't be surprised if the New England Patriots use the No. 3 overall pick of Thursday's 2024 NFL draft on Drake Maye.

Chad Graff and Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported Wednesday that the AFC East team views the North Carolina quarterback "as a close-to-ideal fit for the offense they want to run."

"With offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, the Patriots will utilize a playbook similar to the one Kevin Stefanski deploys in Cleveland. Stefanski favors quarterbacks who can throw on the run and excel on play action. Maye checks those boxes," Graff and Russini added.

It isn't difficult to envision a scenario where Maye ends up in New England.

It will basically come down to what the Washington Commanders do at No. 2, as the Chicago Bears are widely expected to take USC quarterback Caleb Williams with the top pick. If Washington takes LSU signal-caller Jayden Daniels with the second choice, the Patriots might jump at the chance to take Maye.

And they could certainly use a quarterback, as they traded Mac Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars this offseason. Jones never lived up to expectations as a 2021 first-rounder and was benched at times this past season.

The current quarterback room consists of Jacoby Brissett, Bailey Zappe and Nathan Rourke, which doesn't exactly inspire fear across the league the way Tom Brady used to when he was under center for the Patriots.

Maye could step in right away as the starter after taking home the 2022 ACC Player of the Year and then following with a 2023 campaign that saw him complete 63.3 percent of his passes for 3,608 yards, 24 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

There is also the possibility New England trades out of the No. 3 pick.

Along those lines, ESPN's Dan Graziano and Jeremy Fowler reported Wednesday that the team is "high" on Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and met with him during the pre-draft process to see if it would be comfortable drafting him if it does trade out of the No. 3 spot.

Whether it is Maye, Penix or someone else, it is clear the Patriots are looking for a quarterback as they look to put two consecutive losing seasons in the rearview mirror.