Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels pulled out a few extra bells and whistles in the team's 16-3 Wild Card round victory over the Chargers - with varying degrees of success - but quarterback Drake Maye is a big fan of how he called the game.
"It keeps the defense on their toes. It has to be one of those things where the offense dictates and the defense reacts," Maye told 'WEEI Afternoons' during his weekly appearance, part of the station's 'Patriots Mondays.'
McDaniels called a speed option play for Maye in the second half of Sunday's win, as well as a trick play for quarterback and receiver Efton Chism - the same one he once ran with Tom Brady and Danny Amendola in Super Bowl LII. Maye felt he could have provided a better route for Chism, who became the thrower in that play:
"I thought it had a good chance when I came around the edge. Nobody saw me. I was trying to be kind of, incognito. Credit Chiz getting around there. It's a tougher throw than you think, with guys coming at you. It was a good call. Had a chance to get a catch."
McDaniels has been a longtime fan of throwing out gadget plays and wildcat formations, and it sounds like he has an enthusiastic partner in Maye.
Head coach Mike Vrabel has said he doesn't like to "second guess" offensive play calls, though after the team's December 14th loss to Buffalo, he spoke about trick plays on 'The Greg Hill Show:'
"You can only run so many double passes that gain 13 yards, you know? I mean, that's cool, and it's cute, but you can only run so many of those before - again, you can only dial up so many of those."
But McDaniels appears to have complete agency over how much of the kitchen sink he wants to throw at the opposition, especially when facing a top-5 passing defense, like the Patriots saw from the L.A. Chargers Sunday night.
He's certainly earned that power: New England's offense wrapped up the regular season second in points per game, (28.8), tied first in yards per play (6.2), and third in yards per game, (379.4).
So, it's fair to expect more chicanery next weekend, and for Maye to be all-in on the call.