The New England Patriots found themselves at a dead end at quarterback heading into the 2024 offseason. Neither Mac Jones nor Bailey Zappe had shown that they can carry the franchise into the future, and after a 4-13 season were both headed out the door. A restart was needed, and it came via the third overall selection in that year’s draft.
Drake Maye out of North Carolina was brought in hopes of reinvigorating an organization that had not won a postseason game in five straight seasons and had become a shell of its former dynastic self.