Drake Maye was one of the nation’s most dangerous dual-threats in college.
The 6’4″, 224-pounder led UNC with almost 900 rushing yards in 2022, and among quarterbacks, only Jayden Daniels totaled more explosive runs from 2022 to 2023. That dominance carried over to the NFL, where Maye led his position in scramble yards as a starter.
Per PFF, Drake Maye led the NFL with 395 rushing yards on scrambles since becoming a starter in Week 6
Jayden Daniels was 2nd with 360, and Justin Herbert was 3rd with 295 pic.twitter.com/XXPFhitqlZ
— Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) January 14, 2025
Former coordinator Alex Van Pelt avoided quarterback runs to protect Maye, who was already under constant fire, but the rookie flashed in limited opportunities. And, despite being less effective on designed carries, he can be a weapon in critical moments and brings experience running multiple concepts.
Long-term, it would be a disservice not to capitalize on Maye’s athleticism. Forcing run defenses to account for the quarterback comes with several benefits, including but not limited to…
- Creating better numbers, angles, and matchups for blockers
- The potential for big plays if defenses aren’t properly prepared
- Protecting core concepts against aggressive defenses
Nothing points to a maximized Maye more than the return of offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who’s compared the sophomore to current reigning MVP Josh Allen for their versatility.
Josh McDaniels discussing his thoughts on Drake Maye this preseason.
Come for the footwork talk, stay for the hint (maybe) at more designed runs.
(📹 | @gameswithnames • @Edelman11) pic.twitter.com/NGiMAuf12i
— Boorish (@Boorish_Sports) January 12, 2025
McDaniels has spent most of his career with pocket passers, leading some to believe he can’t scheme for a running quarterback. But when handed a rookie Jacoby Brissett and an aging Cam Newton, the OC showed a completely different side to his playbook.
Newton ranked 2nd in designed rushes, yards, and touchdowns under McDaniels at 31 years old. He also led the position in designed rushing conversions, and Brissett turned one of his designed runs into the first touchdown of a 27-0 beatdown in his starting debut.
Now Newton was more of a glorified running back that season, so Maye shouldn’t come close to his carry count. Still, those McDaniels’ game plans could offer a peek at New England’s revamped ground game.
Read Option
Most teams weaponize their dual-threats through the read option, which allows quarterbacks to hand off or keep the ball based on a designated “read” defender.
On its own, inside zone creates vertical displacement by blocking areas to create cutbacks. This contrasts with gap runs, which block defenders to open a specific lane.
When paired with read option principles, quarterbacks can steal the edge and gain yards before getting down to avoid contact. This comes with the added bonus of creating soft edges on handoffs to the back.
Newton ranked top-five among quarterbacks with 33 rushes, 197 yards, and 10 conversions on read option keepers. McDaniels called these runs on early downs and in the low Red Zone, typically with a downhill concept like zone or inverted veer, where the quarterback follows a pulling guard inside.
I’d expect more of the zone read for Maye, allowing him to get outside and away from box defenders.
Cam Newton on Zone Read (2020)
The former Tar Heel totaled 26 read option carries in college. Maye turned his 18 zone read attempts into four touchdowns and five conversions. It’s also his only non-scramble or sneak carry to date and led to a 3rd down conversion in Buffalo. Maye also moved the chains on all outside zone read carries, including one score, and found the end zone on his only rep of counter read.
Drake Maye on Read Option (2023-2024)
I couldn’t find any speed option from Maye’s UNC career, but McDaniels called it for both Brissett and Newton in his last stint with the Patriots. This read option variant has the quarterback run toward the read defender with the option to keep or pitch it to a trailing skill player.
Brissett kept the ball on both of his speed option snaps, which came from pistol looks with Julian Edelman motioning to the backfield.
Jacoby Brissett on Speed Option (2016)
The 2020 Patriots called this from multiple looks, usually with Newton creating space for his back on a pitch. His two keeps came from two-back sets against the Rams, which both included shifts out wide from James White.
Cam Newton on Speed Option (2020)
Maye cutting inside for a first down might be tough for opponents to swallow. But in the open field, it beats a home run-hitter like TreVeyon Henderson outside with an angle on the defense.
TreVeyon Henderson on Toss (2024)
The read option will likely be Maye’s bread-and-butter when it comes to non-scramble carries, but there’s more than one way to put defenses in conflict.
Run-Pass Option (RPO)
As the name suggests, run-pass options or “RPOs” give quarterbacks the option to hand off or throw based on the defense’s pre-snap presentation and/or a specific defender.
This was a popular call for McDaniels in the Red Zone and near midfield, where he typically emptied the backfield to leave Newton as the sole run option. This created a numbers advantage against man coverage and caught dropping defenders on their heels against the run.
Cam Newton on QB Draw (2020)
Newton ran a mix of long traps on 3rd downs, sweeps inside the 10, and draws on early downs. He never actually exploited his pass options, but the threat of a throw led to favorable situations and easy conversions. Even when excluding read speed option plays, Newton was easily the most productive player at his position on RPO keepers.
Maye’s most popular concept at UNC was the QB draw, which invites rushers upfield to open rushing lanes downhill. Maye isn’t as big as a Newton or Allen, but he has the vision to weave through defenses and can make people miss for extra yards.
Drake Maye on QB Draw (2023)
Option plays are the most common means of weaponizing a running quarterback, but sometimes, all it takes is math and a little deception.
Designed QB Runs
Between McDaniels’ deep under-center playbook and Newton’s experience running from shotgun, only the Saints (54) totaled more designed quarterback runs than the Patriots (50) in Newton’s lone year as a starter with the Patriots. The Cardinals ranked 3rd with 34, and the Bills trailed Arizona with 23.
One concept that carried over from Brissett to Newton was the bootleg, where the quarterback fakes an handoff before taking off in the opposite direction. These were typically run from under-center with an offset back, but McDaniels incorporated two-back I formations and gap fakes late in 2020.
Brissett took a bootleg 27 yards for a score in his first career start, gashing Houston’s man defense. Years later, Newton would score on the same play against Miami’s man coverage in his first start in New England.
Jacoby Brissett (2016) and Cam Newton (2020) on Bootlegs
Most of Newton’s designed runs came from shotgun, where he could exploit his natural vision. McDaniels used a number of different concepts, but the most prominent were power and counter from goal-line looks.
These plays outflanked the defense by using an offset fullback Jakob Johnson and pulling guard Shaq Mason to lead Newton past the chains or over the goal line.
Cam Newton on QB Power (2020)
McDaniels might reserve these inside-hitters for gotta-have-it moments, but draws and sweeps should be on the table. Maye actually scored on his only collegiate sweep carry, which showed a glimpse of how he can punish man defenses that don’t account for him as a runner.
Drake Maye on QB Sweep (2023)
Conclusion
Maye lacks the alien build to bang between the tackles consistently, but the sophomore’s explosiveness makes him a threat on the edge and out in space. An experienced coordinator like McDaniels should maximize that ability by avoiding bad situations and looks.
A commitment to protecting himself and getting down quickly will be key for Maye. But while his scramble production should decline in a more stable offense, he has the potential to one of the league’s most efficient designed runners in a McDaniels offense that will only continue to grow.
