With the Super Bowl looming on February 8, the NFL spotlight is burning brighter than ever-and for four former North Carolina Tar Heels, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Among them is Drake Maye, who’s not just making headlines-he’s rewriting them. The former UNC standout has taken the New England Patriots all the way back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2019, and he’s done it in a way that’s turning heads across the league.
Maye’s journey to the biggest stage in football hasn’t been smooth, and it certainly hasn’t been easy. While social media might try to simplify his rise, the reality is far more impressive. In this postseason run, Maye has faced down three of the NFL’s top five defenses-and beaten every one of them.
It started on Wild Card Weekend against the Los Angeles Chargers, the league’s fifth-ranked defense. Maye showed poise beyond his years, completing 17-of-29 passes for 268 yards and a touchdown.
He also used his legs to great effect, rushing for 66 yards on 10 carries. The Patriots didn’t just win-they controlled the game, 16-3, and Maye was at the heart of it.
Then came Houston. The Texans came into the Divisional Round with the league’s top-ranked defense, but Maye didn’t blink.
He threw three touchdown passes in a 28-16 win, showcasing a command of the offense that belied his experience level. It was a performance that solidified his growing reputation as a rising star who can deliver in the biggest moments.
And then there was Denver. The AFC Championship Game was a grind-it-out, old-school slugfest played in the snow-a 10-7 win that felt like something out of the NFL’s black-and-white film archives.
Maye didn’t light up the stat sheet, finishing with just 151 scrimmage yards, but he delivered when it mattered most. His lone touchdown proved to be the difference, and his late-game bootleg to seal the win was the kind of gutsy play that builds legends in New England.
Now, the Patriots are headed back to the Super Bowl, and Maye is at the center of it all. But waiting for him is a Seattle Seahawks defense that’s been a problem for quarterbacks all season.
Ranked sixth in the league, Seattle brings relentless pressure and boasts a young, hungry secondary led by Devon Witherspoon. They thrive on creating chaos and forcing turnovers-exactly the kind of defense that tests a quarterback’s composure and decision-making under fire.
For Maye, this is the ultimate test. He’s already knocked off three elite defenses, but Seattle might be the most complete unit he’s faced yet. The question now is whether he can finish what he started-and cap off his second NFL season with the kind of moment that quarterbacks dream about their entire lives.
From Chapel Hill to the Super Bowl, Drake Maye’s rise has been nothing short of remarkable. And come February 8, he’ll have the chance to etch his name into NFL history.