The New England Patriots are hoping to take a step forward during the 2025 season under the leadership of newly minted head coach Mike Vrabel.

The Patriots will also be looking for continued growth out of second year quarterback Drake Maye, who showed some promising flashes during his time as a rookie in 2024.

After taking over the starting job midway through last season, Maye mostly profiled as either a pocket passer or a runner with not much improvising in between, but recently, the former North Carolina standout detailed how he is looking to expand his game in 2025 and beyond.

“Remaining a passer longer when I scramble, I think that’s big,” he said, per Mike Reiss of ESPN. “I feel like I had times last year where I had some guys deep that I may have missed them or took off running instead.”

If Maye is indeed able to add more on-the-move passing to his game, it could unlock a whole new dimension for a Patriots offense that tended to get a bit stagnant at times during the 2024-25 season.

This offseason, the Patriots made a free agency splash by signing wide receiver Stefon Diggs, who had most recently suited up for the Houston Texans.

Diggs is coming off of a torn ACL injury, which is not great news for a receiver on the wrong side of 30 years old, but he still figures to provide Maye with a reliable downfield target who can create separation and find open pockets in the defense.

In Vrabel, the Patriots hired the coach who unofficially ended the Tom Brady era when he beat New England as the head coach of the Tennessee Titans back in 2019-20.

Vrabel has garnered a reputation as being a strong voice capable of commanding a locker room’s attention and establishing a winning culture quickly within organizations mired in losing.

If that trend can continue with Maye and New England, the Patriots could be looking at their first true era of success since Brady skipped town.