Mel Kiper Jr. believes Drake Maye, Justin Herbert comparisons are accurate
With the hype surrounding the 2024 NFL Draft picking up steam, so too is the evaluation of this year’s top prospects, which oftentimes comes with player comparisons.
North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye is one of the top quarterback prospects for this year’s draft after two impressive seasons as the Tar Heels’ starting quarterback, drawing comparisons to Los Angeles quarterback Justin Herbert given his size and skillset.
ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. recently discussed the comparison with Field Yates, admitting to the resemblance of the two passers.
“I hate comps, but the Justin Herbert comp is really accurate Field, that’s the type of quarterback he can become in the NFL,” Kiper said. “If you love Justin Herbert and you think he can be great, look at what Jim Harbaugh‘s saying, ‘I’ve got a gem here, I’ve got a guy’. Everyone’s talking about the Chargers being a Super Bowl contender now that they’ve added Jim Harbaugh as a head coach.”
Both Maye and Herbert tower over the competition, with Maye standing at 6-foot-4, 230 pounds and Herbert standing at 6-foot-6, 236 pounds. Both have strong arms and proved at the college level that they can make all the throws and have the mobility to evade and escape pressure. But where Maye separates himself is with his rushing ability, running for 1,147 yards in his two seasons as a starter compared to Herbert’s 560 rushing yards in his entire four-year college career at Oregon.
Kiper currently projects Maye as the No. 3 overall pick in the draft by the New England Patriots, which he described as a potentially perfect fit for the franchise in need of a new quarterback.
“So Drake Maye if he can be that kind of quarterback, the Patriots, and you mentioned the weather and his skillset, his size, his arm strength, how effortless he is throwing the football to any point. Drake Maye would fit in well with New England, and really in a division where you have to go to Buffalo as well and New York in the AFC and you have to out-duel all those great quarterbacks in the AFC,” Kiper explained.
Maye is regarded as one of the very top prospects in the upcoming draft regardless of position, but one of his flaws was his regression following his breakout season in 2022, throwing for less yards, less touchdowns, and more interceptions in the 2023 season. But Kiper believes that could potentially work in the favor of New England following a handful of uncharacteristic performances from Maye last season.
“Drake Maye in New England, because of the year he had, maybe pushes him to three where he would’ve been locked into two and you wouldn’t have gotten him Field,” Kiper said regarding Maye’s potential draft position. “So if you’re the Patriots you’re kind of happy that the Virginia game, the NC State game, and the Clemson game didn’t go the way maybe Drake Maye hoped it would.”
Mock drafts and projections are nice, but at the end of the day, we won’t know where and when Maye will be selected until the NFL Draft kicks off in Detroit on April 25.