“Hard Knocks: Offseason With the New York Giants” seems to be a rousing success with the inside access fans get to see, and New England Patriots fans were the most excited after the second episode.
A clip of Drake Maye’s NFL Scouting Combine interview with the Giants went viral as fans got to see how quickly the 2024 No. 3 pick processed information Brian Daboll threw at him. From the layperson’s perspective, it might have sounded like gibberish hearing Maye call out the play, the protection and the correct reads. For former Patriots quarterback Scott Zolak, it was an encouraging sight.
“I would say yes because they gave you eight seconds of information. That’s a lot of overload right there,” Zolak said when Marc Bertrand asked if the clip was impressive on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Zolak & Bertrand” on Wednesday. “Gun, dolphin right, 72, tundura, float, h angle, ready break. And he’s got to get up there, set it to the wheel. ‘Yeah, I got it.’ Here’s one thing I’ve learned about him. He’s very excitable. ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, easy stuff.’ He’s a fast talker. When you’re a quick talker, you’re not slow, let me think as I’m talking, processing it. He digested it fast, which is good. That’s quick because that’s a lot of terminology at this level.”
One of the knocks Maye received during the draft process was his ability to read a defense, and there were critiques about North Carolina’s offense, too. However, fans got a snapshot of Maye putting in the work with coaches, which impressed the Giants enough to try to send out a flyer for a draft trade that New England didn’t bite on.
The viral “Hard Knocks” clip gave Patriots fans something to chew on two weeks before Maye competes for the starting job at training camp.
