C.J. Stroud shares words of wisdom for Drake Maye after Pats-Texans

FOXBORO -- C.J. Stroud had something to say. 

He was in the same situation he'd been in a month ago after having beaten rookie first-round quarterback Caleb Williams and the Bears. That postgame interaction, where Stroud tried to share some words of advice for a player one year behind him in his professional development, wasn't all that well received.

But that didn't stop Stroud from pulling Drake Maye aside on Sunday. Twice.

The pair did the typical for-the-cameras handshake immediately after the Texans' 41-21 win over the Patriots. Then after the crowd had moved on, their shots in the can, Stroud doubled back to say something more to Maye.

"Yeah, I gave him a little word, you know, tried to give him a little word of encouragement," Stroud said. "I thought he played really solid, you know. Definitely feel like he'll get better and better as he keeps going."

Drake Maye 🤝 C.J. Stroud pic.twitter.com/piOV17wLGr

— Patriots Coverage on NBCS Boston (@NBCSPatriots) October 13, 2024

Maye finished the game completing 20 of his 33 attempts for 243 yards and three touchdowns. He also threw two picks, and he lost a fumble on a strip sack. But despite New England's 20-point loss, there was optimism in the Patriots locker room as it related to Maye's performance.

Stroud was encouraged by it, too. Though, to be fair, he was a fan of Maye's even before he was drafted. His advice for the No. 3 overall pick in this year's draft, therefore, was straightforward.

"Just be yourself, you know," Stroud said. "Everything that got you here will take care of where you want to go, and really just trust yourself. Trust that you'll eventually figure it out.

"You'll have bad days. You'll have good days. There's days where you'll look at yourself like, man, I'm the worst quarterback in the world, but it's always about getting up the next day and keep going. So I would just tell him that and I told him how much I believed in him and I hope to see him do well in this league."

Maye could do worse in terms of in-the-league mentorship.

While Stroud is only about 11 months older than Maye, in 2023 he submitted arguably the most productive rookie quarterbacking campaign the NFL has seen in recent years, completing 64 percent of his passes and throwing 26 touchdown passes compared to just five interceptions. He also led the Texans to a 10-7 record and an AFC South title.

Stroud had a much different situation around him as a rookie than Maye does now. 

The Patriots fielded an offensive line Sunday with four players who were released by their respective teams after training camp. Left guard Michael Jordan was released by the Patriots in August but brought back. Fill-in left tackle Zach Thomas (who replaced injured starter Vederian Lowe) and right tackle Demontrey Jacobs were waiver-wire pickups. And starting center Ben Brown was signed off the Raiders practice squad last week.

Stroud, meanwhile, had a group last year that included Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil, former Patriots guard Shaq Mason and second-round pick Juice Scruggs.

The Patriots are also still working without a clear-cut No. 1 wide receiver, while Stroud helped a pair of young wideouts -- Nico Collins and Tank Dell -- perform as two of the best in the league a season ago. 

What would Stroud like to know if he was back in Maye's shoes, early in his rookie season?

"Honestly, just take completions, stay in the positive, and make guys around you better," Stroud said. "I would say those are the three things I would want to know, and it doesn't happen overnight. 

"It's not easy. He has a -- hopefully -- a team helping him like I had last year. I had so many guys helping me. Definitely hope that helped him, what I said. But those three things definitely helped me on top of just being disciplined."

Stroud was right. It won't be easy. Maye was sacked on four occasions Sunday, and he was hit four more times. But maybe his late-afternoon back-and-forth with Stroud gave him some helpful perspective as his Year 1 journey gets underway.

Few know what it's like to try to turn the fortunes of a franchise around. Fewer have done it as effectively as Stroud.