Drake Maye earns Peyton Manning comparison from Joe Buck: ‘He’s 23 years old and just phenomenal.’

New England Patriots

“Just his demeanor, to be a 23-year-old, just kind of blew me away.”

By Conor Roche

January 17, 2026 | 12:08 PM

3 minutes to read

Patriots fans might not like who Joe Buck compared Drake Maye to, but the “Monday Night Football” play-by-play announcer tossed some pretty high praise the New England quarterback’s way.

Buck compared Maye to Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning in the most recent episode of NBC Sports Boston’s “Next Pats Podcast.” While Maye and Manning don’t have similar playing styles, Buck believes he’s like the former Patriots rival due to the way he carries himself.

“He’s 23 years old and just phenomenal,” Buck said. “When he was on our production call, he hung up, and I was like, ‘Something about him reminds me of Manning. I don’t know what it is, maybe the Southern accent?’ Just his demeanor, to be a 23-year-old, just kind of blew me away.”

Buck recognized that Maye and Manning aren’t similar as players, but he does think that the Patriots quarterback understands what it takes to be a leader in the same way that Manning did, thanks to their backgrounds.

“I think it’s a maturity at a young age,” Buck said. “Obviously, they both come from incredible sports families. Peyton with his younger brother Eli, who will likely end up in the Hall of Fame, and his dad Archie Manning and everything that family has brought to the National Football League. And then you’ve got Drake Maye with his brothers and his dad.

“There’s just something about him. Obviously, it’s not the on-field play style, but there’s a maturity there at 23 years old that you just hang up and you go, ‘Man, that young man is different.’”

Maye’s leadership has garnered some praise across the Patriots’ locker room this season. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has stated on multiple occasions that he’s liked how Maye has taken command of the offense, and Mike Vrabel believes that the second-year quarterback has stepped up to become a leader.

Buck also mentioned a conversation he had with Patriots tight end Hunter Henry ahead of Sunday’s divisional round game against the Texans that spoke to Maye’s persona.

“The fact that Hunter Henry, who’s 30 years old, is [Maye’s] closest friend, as he told me on our call, I think says a lot,” Buck said. “He’s not hanging around the young guys. The buddy that he’s with, [we called the Patriots’ game against the Giants] after Thanksgiving, was Hunter Henry and his family and other teammates. That’s who he gravitates to.

“There’s a mature-beyond-his-years factor with Drake Maye that I think is evident when you talk to him.”

Now, Buck believes that maturity has helped Maye early in his career in a similar fashion that it helped develop Manning to become one of the game’s top quarterbacks.

“I think it’s evident with the way he plays on the field,” Buck said. “He limits turnovers. He doesn’t panic. He takes off at the right time. He takes off to run and throw [at the right time]. His eyes are downfield. But if it’s not there, he doesn’t force it.”

Both Maye and Manning had pretty rocky rookie seasons while showing some promise before making a Year 2 jump. Manning finished second in the MVP vote in 1999, helping the Colts go from 3-13 to 13-3 as he finished top-four in passing yards, passing touchdowns, passer rating, and yards per attempt.

Maye also seems destined to finish in the top two of the MVP vote in his second season. He also quarterbacked the Patriots to a 10-win improvement in his second year, going from 4-13 to 14-3. Maye led the league in passer rating (113.5) and yards per attempt (8.9), while finishing third in passing touchdowns (31) and fourth in passing yards (4,394).

Manning’s Year 2 ended with a home loss to the Titans in the divisional round. So, Patriots fans are hoping that Maye’s Year 2 doesn’t completely follow Manning’s Year 2, as the Patriots will host the Texans in the divisional round on Sunday.

But Buck, who’ll be on the call for ABC and ESPN, certainly believes that the Patriots are set at quarterback again for a very long time.

“I think for the rest of the country, they’re looking at the Patriots and going, ‘Oh, they did it again,’” Buck said. “They had [Tom] Brady for 18, 19 years or whatever it was and now they’ve got Drake Maye, who’s settling in in Year No. 2 and could be the MVP of the National Football League.”