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You have to feel for the Cleveland Browns, Jets, and Chicago Bears. These teams have spent decades in quarterback purgatory, rotating through young players and temporary starters. Meanwhile, after just five years of looking, the New England Patriots – the post-Tom Brady Patriots – appear to have found the guy.

Five years. From Brady to Cam Newton to Mac Jones to Bailey Zappe to Maye’s first choppy season to this: a 23-year-old quarterback who looks like a top-five starter and Most Valuable Player contender.

Last week was his breakout: a road win in Orchard Park, where Maye went throw-for-throw with Josh Allen and outplayed the reigning MVP in the fourth quarter. But Sunday in New Orleans may have been even more impressive. Fresh off an upset win over the division leaders, a visit to a struggling Saints squad had potential for a letdown. And the Saints threatened early. They executed a big play on the first play of the game, before faltering in the red zone and settling for a field goal. It took Maye just four snaps to answer, uncorking a 53-yard deep ball to Pop Douglas for the leading touchdown.

Drake Maye goes 53 yards deep to Pop Douglas!

It was Maye at his best, navigating the protection to throw a strike downfield. From there, he kept pushing: Maye dominated the Saints in every area of the field. His opening two quarters was so searing that his alma mater was forced to tweet. He finished 18-of-26 for 261 yards with three touchdowns and zero giveaways. And it might have been better if not for a trio of debatable referee decisions.

It was his fifth straight game with at least 200 yards and a QB rating above 100. Only Patrick Mahomes, Dak Prescott, and the Hall of Famer have achieved that at 23 years old or less.

The top QBs turn difficult road games into routine victories. They don’t put the ball in harm’s way, maintain offensive momentum and deliver key passes 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 stout front. Their defense allowed multiple chunk plays. This was a contest decided by Maye’s right arm. And he delivered under fire.

Maye took hits a several times and sacked once, but the pressure he faced was continuous. It didn’t matter. Maye passed all three touchdown passes under pressure, with each going over 20 yards in the air.

It's beyond statistics. It’s how Maye carries himself. He’s self-assured and calm in the protection, scanning options to find open targets. When needed, he can run and improvise on the ground. As a first-year player, he was a little chaotic, fleeing the pocket at the first sign of trouble. But this season, he’s been reminiscent of Brady, conforming to the confines of the scheme and delivering the ball to the right spot in a hurry.

For the season, Maye is up to 10 TD passes, two rushing touchdowns and only two picks. He’s reduced by half his Turnover Worthy Play rate from his debut season, when he was always attempting to conjure magic out of broken plays. Currently, he’s picking his moments. He hasn’t committed a TWP in three games.

After college, Maye was billed as a strong-armed passer. Evaluators questioned his capacity to read complex defenses and run a detailed system. Too loose. Overly risky. But the offensive coordinator, in his third stint as Patriots offensive coordinator, has unleashed the full breadth of his scheme. Maye isn’t being limited; he’s being relied on. The Patriots are evolving weekly again, and Maye is piloting the offense like an eight-year vet.

His development has sped up the Patriots’ timeline. If there were to be sophomore improvement, you imagined it would be a slow burn. There would still exist the highlight throws, while Maye spent the year trying to cut his mental errors in half. That would be progress. In contrast, Maye has exceeded predictions. Six games into his second season, he’s turned into one of the league’s best – and he’s transformed the Patriots into division contenders once more.

Bears fans will find solace in seeing the progress of their rookie QB. But if you’re a Cleveland or New York follower, you have to wince. Because this is the ideal scenario when a franchise QB arrives. And for the rest of the league’s teams lacking QBs, it’s yet another reminder of how harsh and repetitive this sport can be. The Patriots went from the greatest of all time to a possible great in half a decade. Some teams spend a quarter of a century searching – and never locate a solution.

Securing a franchise QB is about more than victories. It changes the personality of a fan base and franchise. For 20 years, the Pats lived the gilded life. But the recent years have been about failing to build a transition from Tom Brady to the next era. They’ve found the answer now. Prepare for your Masshole friends to regain their Brady-era bluster.

Player of the Week

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Seattle Seahawks. Against a stifling Jaguars defense, Seattle’s only way forward was for Sam Darnold to target Smith-Njigba, anywhere and everywhere. The receiver responded with eight receptions for 162 yards and a touchdown on 13 attempts, as the Seahawks snuck past the Jaguars by eight points. The Seahawks' D set the tone, pressuring Trevor Lawrence and sacking him a season-high seven sacks. But it was JSN who supported the Seattle's attack, making up all the first 117 of the Seahawks’ initial 117 yards via passing. That featured a long TD and maybe the nastiest route we’ll see from a receiver 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.

Highlight of the Week

The Miami Dolphins were on the losing end of another frustrating, late defeat. They gained a narrow lead over the Chargers with 48 seconds left, after their QB found his tight end for his fourth score of the season. The Chargers returned a 40-yard kickoff on the following kick. From there, the Chargers' QB and his receiver seized control.

WILD PLAY BY HERBERT AND MCCONKEY.

Hoo boy. That is brutal. Amazingly, Herbert was able to evade two oncoming pass-rushers, dodging the first before throwing the second to the ground. He located McConkey in the flat, who faked out a defender to advance in range for the winning kick.

It sums up the Chargers' year: squeaking by on the brilliance of their QB and his surrounding playmakers as his offensive line flails. And it sums up the Dolphins’ defense, too: a defensive pressure that struggles to finish and a weak coverage. With the loss, the Dolphins dropped to 1-5. Miserable second-half collapses have become standard for Mike McDaniel’s team. With another rough loss, he’s running out of time to save his job.

Stat of the Week

Negative 10. That’s the passing yardage the Jets' QB ended with in the New York Jets' 13-11 loss to the Broncos in the UK. It’s the fewest in any game since the San Diego Chargers had negative 19 in 1998. Back then, the Chargers started a rookie making his third game. Fields was in his 49th start.

It's clear who Fields is now: an elite rusher who has difficulty to read the {passing game|pass