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It's hard not to sympathize with the Browns, New York Jets, and Bears. These teams have spent decades in quarterback purgatory, rotating through prospects and placeholders. In contrast, after just five years of looking, the New England Patriots – the after-Brady Patriots – appear to have found their man.

Five years. From Brady to Cam Newton to Mac Jones to Bailey Zappe to Maye’s first choppy season to this: a young quarterback who appears to be a top-five starter and Most Valuable Player contender.

His breakout performance came last week: a road win in Orchard Park, where Maye went throw-for-throw with Josh Allen and surpassed the reigning MVP in the final period. But Sunday in New Orleans may have been more remarkable. Coming off an upset win over the division leaders, a visit to a lousy Saints team had potential for a letdown. And the Saints threatened early. They ripped off a big play on the opening snap of the game, before faltering in the red zone and opting for a field goal. It took Maye just four snaps to respond, uncorking a long pass to Pop Douglas for the leading touchdown.

Drake Maye goes 53 yards deep to Pop Douglas!

It was Maye at his best, navigating the pocket to deliver a strike downfield. From there, he kept pushing: Maye torched the Saints in every area of the field. His first half was so searing that his alma mater was compelled to post. He ended 18 completions on 26 attempts for 261 yards with three touchdowns and zero giveaways. And it could have been more if not for a series of questionable officiating calls.

It was his fifth consecutive outing with over 200 yards and a passer rating above 100. Only Patrick Mahomes, the Cowboys' QB, and Dan Marino have achieved that at 23 years old or less.

The best quarterbacks convert tough away matches into ho-hum wins. They avoid risky throws, keep the offense chugging and make the decisive throws on crucial downs. The Patriots needed every bit of Maye's flawless play to narrowly defeat the Saints. They struggled on the ground against a strong defensive line. Their defense gave up multiple chunk plays. This was a contest decided by Maye’s right arm. And he delivered under fire.

Maye was hit a few times and tackled once, but the defensive pressure was continuous. It made no difference. Maye threw all three scoring throws under pressure, with each going over 20 yards in the flight.

It's beyond statistics. It’s Maye's demeanor. He’s self-assured and calm in the pocket, bouncing through reads to locate receivers. When necessary, he can run and improvise on the ground. As a rookie, he was a somewhat erratic, fleeing the pocket at the initial hint of danger. But now, he’s been reminiscent of Brady, adapting to the structure of the scheme and getting the ball to the right spot in a hurry.

This year, Maye is up to 10 passing touchdowns, two rushing touchdowns and only two picks. He’s halved his Turnover Worthy Play rate from his rookie year, when he was always attempting to conjure magic out of failed schemes. Now, he’s choosing wisely. He hasn’t committed a turnover-worthy play in three games.

After college, Maye was billed as a big-armed bomber. Scouts questioned his capacity to process sophisticated coverages and run a complex offense. Overly casual. Overly risky. But the offensive coordinator, in his third stint as New England's OC, has unleashed the entire range of his playbook. Maye isn’t being limited; he’s being trusted. The Patriots are shapeshifting each week again, and Maye is leading the attack like an experienced veteran.

His development has accelerated the Patriots' schedule. If there were to be second-year progress, you imagined it would be a gradual process. There would still exist the highlight throws, while Maye spent the year trying to cut his mental errors in half. That would be progress. Instead, Maye has exceeded expectations. Six matches into his second season, he’s become one of the NFL's top players – and he’s made the Patriots into division contenders once more.

Bears fans will find solace in seeing the development of their rookie QB. But if you’re a Cleveland or New York follower, you have to cringe. Because this is what it’s supposed to look like when a franchise quarterback emerges. And for the other NFL teams lacking QBs, it’s another example of how harsh and repetitive this game can be. The Patriots went from the GOAT to a possible great in half a decade. Some teams spend a 25 years looking – and never locate a solution.

Securing a franchise QB is about beyond victories. It changes the personality of a fan base and franchise. For 20 years, the Pats lived the privileged existence. But the last few seasons have been about not constructing a bridge from Brady to whatever would come next. They’ve found the answer now. Get ready for your New England pals to regain their Brady-era bluster.

Player of the Week

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Seattle Seahawks. Against a tough Jacksonville D, Seattle's sole option was for their QB to target Smith-Njigba, constantly. The receiver answered with eight catches for over 150 yards and a score on 13 targets, as the Seahawks snuck past the Jaguars 20-12. Seattle’s defense led the way, hounding the Jaguars' QB and dropping him a year-high seven times. But it was JSN who carried the Seattle's attack, accounting for all the first 117 of the team's early yards through the air. That featured a long TD and maybe the nastiest route we’ll see from a pass-catcher all year.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba just beat new Jaguars CB Greg Newsome on his very first snap with his new squad – a 61-yard touchdown.

Video of the Week

The Miami Dolphins were on the losing end of another disappointing, late defeat. They took a one-point lead over the Chargers with under a minute remaining, after Tua Tagovailoa found his tight end for his fourth touchdown of the year. The Chargers returned a 40-yard kickoff on the following kick. From there, Justin Herbert and Ladd McConkey seized control.

WILD PLAY BY HERBERT AND MCCONKEY.

Hoo boy. That is brutal. Somehow, Herbert was able to evade two defenders, dodging the initial before throwing the second to the ground. He located McConkey in the short area, who put a Dolphins’ corner on skates to advance in position for the game-winning field goal.

It sums up the Chargers' year: narrowly winning on the excellence of Herbert and his surrounding playmakers as his offensive line struggles. And it reflects the Dolphins’ defense, too: a defensive pressure that can't complete sacks and a floundering secondary. With the defeat, the Dolphins fell to one win and five losses. Painful late-game failures have become common for the Dolphins. With another defeat, he’s losing time to save his job.

Stat of the Week

Negative 10. That’s the net passing yards Justin Fields finished with in the Jets’ 13-11 loss to the Denver Broncos in London. It’s the fewest in any match since the Chargers had minus-19 in the late 90s. Even then, the Chargers had a rookie making his third professional start. Fields was in his 49th start.

We know who Fields is now: an elite rusher who has difficulty to read the {passing game|pass