Drake Maye is blossoming into one of the NFL's best quarterbacks before fans' eyes, which is seeing him draw comparisons to Josh Allen. However, his emergence is baad news for the Atlanta Falcons, who will travel to Foxborough to face off with Maye and the scorching Patriots on Sunday afternoon.
Three weeks ago, Jeff Ulbrich's defense stifled Allen and the Bills in a shocking primetime upset back in Week 6. Since then, Atlanta has lost two straight and have looked like a shell of that team. And entering Week 9, Ulbrich was quick to admit to admit the similarities between the two quarterbacks.
Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich on Patriots quarterback Drake Maye: "He's way better than I want him to be. He feels like a mini Josh Allen."
— Terrin Waack (@TerrinWaack) October 29, 2025
Despite having won five games in a row, things won't come easy for Maye, as Atlanta boasts the NFL's best pass defense. It doesn't take a genius to see that Ulbrich's gameplan in slowing down the second-year sensation is going to be eerily similar to the formula that neutralized the reigning MVP on Monday Night Football.
Jeff Ulbrich knows it won't be easy slowing down Drake Maye in Week 9
The most impressive thing about the 23-year-old is that he's doing more with less. Despite throwing to a receiver core headlined by a past his prime Stefon Diggs, Kayshon Boutte, and Pop Douglas, Maye has still found a way to shine in a Josh McDaniels offense where we know what Tom Brady did.
Maye, the No. 3 pick in the 2024 Draft, leads the NFL with a staggering 75.2% completion percentage, and is fifth among all quarterbacks with 2,026 passing yards through eight games. And those numbers are a far cry from what his fellow 2024 draftee, Michael Penix Jr., has accomplished.
The former North Carolina standout has no true WR1, and he's blossoming into an elite talent far sooner than anyone expected. Between his rocket arm strength and his mobility, New England looks primed to return to the Tom Brady days if Maye keeps up this pace under center.
The Patriots are 6-0 this season in games they've scored over 20 points, while the Falcons defense is surrendering 22 points per contest this season. And if the unit is without Jessie Bates on Sunday, it will make an already daunting matchup even tougher for Ulbrich's group.
Both Bates and Raheem Morris managed to say something similar regarding the Allen-like effect Maye has had on the Patriots' rebuild. But in Sunday's Super Bowl LI rematch, the Falcons are going to need the best of Ulbrich's unit if they want to come out victorious.