Former NFL MVP Matt Ryan shares his message to Drake Maye

Matt Ryan is still a popular figure in New England — be it his collegiate ties as a standout quarterback at Boston College, or his infamous role in the Patriots’ improbable 28-3 comeback in Super Bowl LI. 

The former Eagles QB and NFL MVP made a surprise appearance at Patriots training camp in Foxborough last week, with Ryan getting an opportunity to meet with New England rookie QB Drake Maye after practice.

Maye, just like Ryan in 2008, was drafted third overall in his respective draft — with Maye also saddled with plenty of lofty expectations as a franchise savior. Speaking to WBZ’s Dan Roche after practice, Ryan revealed what his message was to Maye as he begins to prep for his first taste of preseason action in the NFL ranks.

“Take it day by day. That’s exactly what I told him after practice. I’ve gotten to know Drake a little bit and he’s a really good guy and has a good head on his shoulders,” Ryan told Roche. “But it’s hard. 

“You’re going to have days where it doesn’t feel like it’s going well, but you have to keep coming back every day with the same attitude, same type of intensity to see that little progression grow. Before you know it, you’re going to feel comfortable. It just takes hard work day in and day out.”

Even though Ryan was immediately thrust into a starting role during his time with the Falcons, the Patriots do have some insurance in place on their current roster — with the presence of veteran QB Jacoby Brissett giving New England the option to let Maye find his footing at the NFL level without throwing him into the fire in Week 1 of the 2024 season. 

“It helps when you have a veteran guy who has been in a number of different systems, has played with a lot of success when he had opportunities, and been around guys who have been at the top of the position,” Ryan said of Brissett’s presence ahead of Maye on the depth chart. “He had been around and could tell you to ‘chill out.’ I think Jacoby is a great mentor for [Maye].”

Tom Brady shared a similar message in June when asked about Maye and his potential in New England — stressing that the Patriots’ newest QB needs to surround himself with veteran players and leaders as he goes through the expected growing pains as an NFL rookie.

“I’m very fortunate to be around him, and I like him a lot,” Brady said of Maye. “I’ve heard great things about him. But his opportunity is really going to be what he makes of it, and how he wants to develop it. … It’s not where you’re at when you’re 22, it’s who you’re around when you’re 22.

“I was so fortunate, I look at my career, I was looking at other competitors like Peyton Manning, Steve McNair, Vinny Testaverde was playing for the Jets, Brett Favre was playing. I was looking around at quarterbacks who were unbelievable, and I had coaches who were unbelievable.”