Drake Maye really took a back seat last season when it came to discussions about rookie QBs. Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels were the talk of the town as they got to start for their teams right away, while Maye sat behind Jacoby Brissett, waiting for his time to shine.
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Daniels lived up to the promise last season, too. So much so that he was named Rookie of the Year after taking an average Washington Commanders team and leading them to their first NFC Championship appearance since 1991.
But now, amidst Maye’s impressive sophomore season, combined with Daniels’ injuries and Williams’ struggles, some believe the New England Patriots QB is the best of his class, including especially former Patriots guard Damien Woody.
“Yes. Drake Maye is the best of that outstanding class,” Woody said on Get Up. “I’ve been on this show for weeks now saying that Drake Maye is playing like a Top 5 quarterback, and he absolutely is doing it right now.”
It’s hard to disagree with the analyst at the moment. Maye has looked amazing so far. He’s thrown for over 2000 yards, 15 TDs, and has a QBR of 76.2. All of which are ranked top 5 in the league.
Woody even went on to drop a crazy stat that surprisingly raised the eyebrows of co-panelist Adam Schefter.
“Drake Maye has the second-highest completion percentage in NFL history through 8 games,” Woody shared. “Only trailing Drew Brees right now. The man is doing it with his arm. He’s doing it with his legs. With Mike Vrabel and Josh McDaniels coaching him right now, this man is just looking outstanding.”
.@damienwoody says Drake Maye is the best QB from the 2024 draft class pic.twitter.com/4CUZRzyTkf
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) October 27, 2025
Some fans may hear this and call out Woody for recency bias, but he’s actually not saying anything too crazy. If we compare Maye’s 2025 season to Daniels’ 2024 campaign, the former is on pace to pass the latter in passing yards, TDs, and QBR. He’s also led the team to a 6-2 record, which is the same record that the Commanders held under Daniels last season at this time.
With this in mind, it’s not crazy to say that Maye has been the best QB of his class so far. The roles have completely reversed between him and Daniels in year two. One is the new hot topic, while the other is taking a backseat.
However, only time will tell if this remains the case. There’s still a lot of football left to be played. For now, though, Maye looks like the better of the two. At best, Daniels could get healthy and go on a late-season run that settles this debate. We’ll just have to wait and see.
As for Washington, it’s been a nightmare in the capital so far. They’re 3-4, Daniels has already been injured twice, and that injury bug has spread to other key players like Deebo Samuel, Terry McLaurin, and Austin Ekeler. It’s all bad for one side and all good for the other, but that could easily change in a matter of weeks.
