Falcons DC Jeff Ulbrich Sees Josh Allen in Drake Maye: “He’s Better Than I Wanted Him to Be”

Drake Maye has generated fear among the hearts of the opposition defensive coordinators after eight weeks of the football in the 2025 season.

Falcons DC Jeff Ulbrich Sees Josh Allen in Drake Maye: “He’s Better Than I Wanted Him to Be”

Jeff Ulbrich and Drake Maye (Image via IMAGO)

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Drake Maye’s first year with the New England Patriots went under the radar. Of course, the Patriots won just 4 games, which led to the firing of Jerod Mayo, but Maye displayed that he has the necessary tools in his arsenal to lead this team for a long time.

The 23-year-old took his game up a couple of notches. It won’t be an exaggeration to say that he’s always playing in third gear in his second year at Foxborough.

Six wins in eight starts have forced the league to take not only the Patriots seriously but also to appreciate Maye’s talents as an elite shot caller. He is a long way from being mentioned in the same sentence as his predecessor, Tom Brady, but one particular NFL defensive coordinator believes that Maye reminds him of Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen.

Jeff Ulbrich spent a couple of years as the DC and interim head coach of the New York Jets. As the Jets are in the same division as the Pats and the Bills, Ulbrich made contingency plans for both quarterbacks.

Ulbrich is now the brain behind the Atlanta Falcons’ defense that has locked down quarterbacks such as Baker Mayfield, Marcus Mariota, and Allen. In week nine, Ulbrich’s Falcons are set to square off against the Patriots. Ahead of the fixture, Ulbrich drew parallels between Maye and the reigning NFL MVP, Allen.

It’s a tremendous challenge being in the AFC East for four years. Got very familiar with Drake, especially the last couple [years]. He’s way better than I wanted him to be. He feels like a mini Josh Allen, [like a younger Josh Allen] in a lot of ways. His mobility, his arm strength, and the way he can take a game over with both facets of the game. So he’s going to be—[Drake Maye] is a problem.

Jeff Ulbrich said

After the Patriots’ win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, DraftKings Network (HT/Sports Illustrated) gave Maye the third-best odds of becoming the 2025 NFL MVP.

Former NFL MVP isn’t ready to count Drake Maye as a top 5 quarterback just yet

Cam Newton played one year in New England when the Patriots were looking for a replacement for the departed Brady. It did not work out for him. Mac Jones took over, and Newton returned to the Carolina Panthers.

Falcons DC Jeff Ulbrich Sees Josh Allen in Drake Maye: "He's Better Than I Wanted Him to Be"
Cam Newton (Image via IMAGO)

That doesn’t mean Newton wasn’t a great quarterback. On the contrary, he could go down among the best Panthers in general. He won the league MVP as the Panthers quarterback, the Offensive Player of the Year award, and played in the Super Bowl. So, there are a select few who understand what it takes to be an elite quarterback, and Cam’s undoubtedly one of them. From his point of view, Maye has been phenomenal in 2025, but he has yet to crack the code of being an elite in his craft.

Am I fan of Drake Maye? Absolutely. But one thing that you have to understand, and you know this more than anybody, Damien Woody, in order to be the best, you have to do what? Beat the best. In this case, you did it once. But to beat the best, you have to do this twice.

Cam Newton said on ESPN’s First Take

Cam’s assessment does have its merit to some degree, but Maye’s regular-season statistics paint a different story. Maye’s 286 yards, three touchdowns, and a passer rating of 135.8 in the win over the Browns were his fifth game this campaign when he’s recorded at least 200 passing yards, a 135+ passer rating, and at least two touchdown passes in a game.

According to CBS Sports research, Maye surpassed Brady, who had four such games in his 2007 MVP season. He is currently rubbing shoulders with Hall of Famers and future HOF.

Drake Maye has so far completed 170 passes from 226 attempts (75.2%) for 2026 yards, 17 total touchdowns, and 3 interceptions. If he maintains the same until the final week, then he could end up with 4000+ yards and 30 touchdowns.

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