\u201c(Maye) did it with less.\u201d<\/b>
\n\u201c(Maye) did it with less.\u201d
Ahead of Sunday\u2019s Super Bowl rematch between the Patriots and Seahawks, many NFL fans and media personalities aren\u2019t solely discussing the big game.
They\u2019re also debating whether or not New England quarterback Drake Maye should have won NFL MVP over Matthew Stafford.
Stafford, 38, was given the honor Thursday night after beating out Maye by just six points.
One of many non-voters to weigh in on the outcome includes former Colts Pro Bowl center (and briefly interim head coach in 2022) and current ESPN analyst Jeff Saturday. Saturday said he would have voted for Maye over Stafford, insinuating that Stafford didn\u2019t deserve to win the award based on his play in his 2025-26 campaign.
\u201cListen, I understand the lifetime achievement award to Matt Stafford. He\u2019s unbelievable, played a great season, all those things were great,\u201d Saturday said on \u201cGet Up\u201d Friday. \u201cAnd you\u2019re gonna talk to me about touchdowns and what he did against the Seahawks \u2014 he played [them] three times \u2014 you know the division very well. All that\u2019s good.\u201d
Stafford, the Rams\u2019 QB, plays in the NFC West, which is also home to the Seahawks. Therefore, Stafford faced Seattle three times: twice in the regular season and once in the NFC Championship Game. However, the Seahawks bested the Rams in two out of three contests, including when it mattered most.
The Patriots and the Rams had six common opponents this season in the Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers, Ravens, Saints, and Titans. ESPN collected stats from both Maye and Stafford in their games against those teams in a graphic that Saturday used to defend his stance.
\u201cMaye [went] 6-0, Stafford 4-2. Maye [had] 84 first downs, Stafford 74. QBR \u2014 is that a 20-plus-point difference in QBR? Yes, it is, sir. Yes it is,\u201d Saturday said. Maye\u2019s total QBR in those six games was 81.4 while Stafford\u2019s was 57.8. \u201c\u2026 (Maye) has more yards in total than Matt Stafford because he also uses his legs.\u201d
Saturday argued that Maye, 23, was more deserving of winning MVP because he\u2019s a dual-threat QB, making him all the more difficult to defend. Meanwhile, Stafford, one of the league\u2019s oldest active signal-callers, isn\u2019t capable of using his legs. Maye finished the regular season with 4,394 passing yards, fourth-most in the league. Stafford finished with 4,707 yards, a NFL-best.
Additionally, Maye finished the regular season with 31 passing touchdowns and four rushing scores; Stafford threw 46 TD passes and didn\u2019t break the plane himself.
\u201cIs it more difficult to try to stop somebody who can run and pass, or just pass? Just answer honestly. Drake Maye has done that,\u201d Saturday said.
On top of that, Saturday came to Maye\u2019s defense by saying that the sophomore QB didn\u2019t have the elite weapons around him that Stafford did. The Rams possessed an elite offensive receiving and rushing corps that was expected to thrive. On the other hand, many of the Patriots\u2019 weapons entered the season with something to prove and arguably succeeded because Maye brought out the best in them.
\u201cAnd, by the way, put all this in a little bow: (Maye) did it with less. He ain\u2019t got Puka [Nacua] and he ain\u2019t got Davante Adams, and he dang sure ain\u2019t got 12-plus one-yard touchdowns,\u201d Saturday said.
Fellow ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes \u2014 who did cast a MVP ballot \u2014 defended her vote for Maye over Stafford Thursday.
\u201cFrom a dominance perspective, Drake Maye was better than Matthew Stafford in just about every meaningful statistic,\u201d she said on \u201cFirst Take.\u201d \u201cQBR, EPA per dropback, success rate. He had the highest completion percentage in the NFL. He was first in all of those, despite having a high average depth of target. On top of that, he was the more efficient quarterback. He also brought an element of rushing you just don\u2019t get from Matthew Stafford.\u201d
Kimes defended her vote for Maye over colleague and former NFL QB Dan Orlovsky, who made his Stafford MVP vote known publicly well before the regular season was even over. Orlovsky and Stafford were teammates on the Lions for three seasons in the 2010s.
\u201cI voted for Stafford. This is my biggest pushback to you and this is where you lose it,\u201d Orlovsky said in response to Kimes. \u201cYou can\u2019t, on one hand, talk about the numerical advantage or the statistical advantage that Drake Maye had on some of the things that you referenced, and then not talk about the schedule. \u2026 The top-ranked defense New England played against was Buffalo at 12.\u201d<\/p>\n