FOXBOROUGH - Playing for Tennessee last season, new Patriots linebacker Jack Gibbens got an up close view of Drake Maye.
He was on the field when Maye made a miraculous play at the goal line, scrambling around, avoiding would-be tacklers before hitting Rhamondre Stevenson in the end zone from five yards out to tie the score in the final seconds.
While the Patriots went on to lose the game 20-17 in overtime in that Week 10 game in Tennessee, Gibbens was clearly impressed with the then Patriots rookie quarterback.
“I came out of that game with a ton of respect for him, and the competitor that he is and the team as a whole, how they fought, and Drake specifically,” said Gibbens, who led the Titans with 14 tackles that game. “His mobility was on full display against us. We couldn’t keep him in the pocket. He was running all over us.”
Gibbens still has visions of Maye making that final play in regulation, somehow avoiding the rush for what seemed like an eternity.
“You could see the kind of the competitiveness, the creativity he has with that last touchdown, scrambling around, making it happen,” Gibbens said. “So I definitely came out of there with a lot of respect for his game and the team as a whole, for sure.”
Gibbens did manage to register a sack of Maye in that game.
“I forgot about that,” Gibbens said. “I think that was my only sack last season. I haven’t brought that up, but I definitely will have to, now.”