Patriots’ Drake Maye Forging Stephon Diggs Connection

By this time, it’s a known fact that for the Patriots, Stefon Diggs was not the first choice to be the team’s WR1. He was just the first choice who said yes. There was interest in trading for Brandon Aiyuk, of course, who did not want to go to New England. The same could be said of Tee Higgins with the Bengals. There was a hard push to sign the Buccaneers’ Chris Godwin, who did not want to leave Tampa.

And there was a pursuit of DK Metcalf, who went to Pittsburgh in a trade from Seattle because he did not want to come to the Patriots.

Ultimately, the Patriots got the last laugh. Aiyuk and Godwin have struggled with health. Higgins is catching passes from backups. Metcalf has only 15 catches, with is 82nd in the league.

Diggs is outplaying all of them, with 29 catches (tied for 10th in the NFL) and 359 yards (12th). He has a PFF grade of 85.6, which is fifth among the league’s 125 graded receivers.

Patriots Getting Big-Time Production From Diggs-Maye

Diggs was outstanding, of course, against Buffalo in Week 5. Facing his former team, he had 10 catches and 146 yards, repeatedly making clutch plays to put the Patriots within scoring range. Maybe that game was a one-off, given his personal motivation, but it could also be seen as the result of a build-up in trust from quarterback Drake Maye.

It was Diggs’ second straight 100-yard day. And Maye clearly has confidence in Diggs, who has been targeted 34 times, posting an 85.3% catch-to-target rate.

Drake Maye: Diggs ‘Easy to Throw To’

The Diggs-Maye connection appears to be very real. Maye talked about it on Wednesday.

“I think the biggest thing is that he’s a receiver that’s easy to throw to,” Maye said. “He has great hands, he catches different ways—with his body, he turns with the football and makes people miss very easily. It’s very natural. So, you can just tell he’s played receiver a long time and played at a high level.

“So, just trying to put it in his vicinity. And he always says, ‘I got you.’ I just trust that, and I think it will continue to build and build and try to get him in the end zone.”

Patriots ‘Moving Forward’ After Big Win

Diggs said on Wednesday that the superhuman plays Maye seemed to make at times on Sunday did not surprise him. The two have been building a rapport going back to the spring.

“Nothing really surprises me. It was just a hell of a game,” he said. “I think it’s more important to move forward, obviously, because it’s in the past. Obviously, we got a big win but moving forward is going to be key for us as far as how we want our season to go and where we are at this point. But hell of a play by him, he is a hell of a player. Hopefully, he makes a lot more of those.”

As for the numbers has has been putting up, Diggs said he is not surprised by that, either, despite the fact that he is 31 and coming off a torn ACL he suffered a year ago when he was playing for Houston.

“I expect to have success,” Diggs said. “I expect to have success and catch the ball. It’s part of my job. I don’t think one game rolls over into another, everybody plays different.”

San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Brock Purdy Is Not Worried About Mac Jones Taking His Job

Brock Purdy warms up before an NFL Preseason game between the Chargers and 49ers on August 23, 2025.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Mac Jones had had a hot start to the 2025 season filling in for injured starter Brock Purdy which has led to a lot of chatter around the football world about if there is a quarterback controversy in San Francisco.

But according to 49ers general manager John Lynch, that chatter is not bothering Purdy one bit.

Lynch on any potential tension in the quarterback room:

"A cool quality about Brock Purdy is he's one of the most self assured, humble people. It's one of the things that appealed to us… I think we all feel fortunate that we found a backup who can go in and play like a… pic.twitter.com/LHByyFymwk

— KNBR (@KNBR) October 9, 2025

“A cool quality about Brock Purdy is he is one of the most self assured, humble people,” Lynch said on KNBR’s Murph and Markus show on Thursday October 9. “It’s one of the things that appealed to us…I think we all feel fortunate that we found a backup who can go in and play like a starter and earn us tough hard fought wins.”

In that one quote, Lynch simultaneously reassured 49ers fans that the organization still clearly views Purdy as the starter and Jones as the backup, and said that even if there turns out to be a QB controversy in SF, he expects Purdy to be nothing but the most supportive and professional guy in the locker room.

Regardless of how you feel about the 49ers quarterback situation and how it plays out from here on out, Purdy’s humility is great for team culture.

Purdy’s Humility Has To Do With His Christian Faith

Being self confident and team first is hard to do when it feels like the whole world believes you should lose your job.

And yet, Lynch said that Purdy has remained that way. How is that possible?

If the past is any indication, Purdy’s Christian Faith is likely what is behind his ability to have a good mindset amidst this situation.

Purdy leaned on his faith when the 49ers drafted him last in the 2022 NFL draft, giving him the title of Mr. Irrelevant, which is something that he talked about with legendary college football quarterback Tim Tebow on a podcast back in 2024.

“So grateful for that, being drafted last, and for [God] to be able to choose me to have this kind of story,” Purdy said. “For my glory? No, for His glory. So that’s what brings me joy.”

It seems like no matter what happens to Purdy, he is going to approach his new situation with humility and gratitude.

Mac Jones Has Also Been Humble, Supportive Of Purdy

The humility of the San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback room is a culture that goes beyond just Purdy.

Mac Jones has downplayed the idea of a QB controversy several times in his public comments.

Even after Jones and the 49ers’ most recent win against the Los Angeles Rams, a game in which Jones played the best football in his career and had every reason to feel full of himself, Jones strongly reiterated that he sees himself as the backup QB.

“They brought me here to be a backup,” Jones said. “That’s my job. Brock is the starter of this team. Right now he’s dealing with something, and for him to go out there last week and play, when you know he probably wasn’t at full health, he cares about this team.”

Mac Jones was asked if he views himself as the starting QB going forward:

"Brock's the starter of this team … I'm just trying to get some wins for him so it helps us down the line."

He has also said in recent weeks that he and Brock are good friends, a relationship that started before the two even played together on the 49ers.

“Brock’s one of my best friends and I want him back out there,” Jones said.

49ers fans could learn a great deal from the public comments of Mac Jones and Brock Purdy, and just support both guys and root for them both to have success and the highest possible level.

Because they’ll certainly cheer one another on.

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