Throughout the 2025 NFL seasons, fans were dazzled by New England Patriots QB Drake Maye's ability to make huge plays with both his arm and his legs. But if you've been following Maye for long enough, the heroics he pulled off aren't exactly new.
Ahead of Super Bowl LX, footage of Maye playing football as an eight-year-old in his native North Carolina has been going viral. Per Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer, Maye was playing in a "obscure youth football league" and pulling off huge sweeping run plays like the one he's done throughout the season.
"The legend of young Drake Maye began with plays like this run (sound on), back when he was 8 years old and running wild in an obscure youth football league in Huntersville, NC. With the help of friends, I’ve unearthed a lot of rare footage for @theobserver of those early days…" Fowler wrote on X.
Maye's Career
Maye went on to play football and even basketball across several different high schools before committing to North Carolina in 20921. Sitting behind Sam Howell as a freshman in 2021, Maye got his chance to start in 2022 and quickly emerged as the ACC's top player.
Over his three seasons with the Tar Heels, Maye went 17-9 as a starter and completed 64.9% of his passes for over 8,000 yards and 63 touchdowns while adding 1,200 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground.
The Patriots gleefully took him No. 3 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft.
© Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images.
Since then, Maye has emerged as one of the NFL’s most promising young quarterbacks. After a solid rookie season where he earned Pro Bowl recognition and showed flashes of franchise leadership, Maye made a significant leap in 2025, guiding the Patriots to a strong record and an AFC playoff run capped by a Super Bowl appearance. Maye has drawn early comparisons to elite quarterbacks and is widely viewed as the centerpiece of the Patriots’ post-Tom Brady era resurgence.