A lot has been said of the New England Patriots' easy path to the playoffs, and rightfully so. They faced the easiest strength of schedule in the league. However, they faced three top-five defenses in their way to the Super Bowl, so it's not like the Seattle Seahawks can't look past them.
Notably, the Patriots will now face the league-leading defense. That should spell trouble for Drake Maye, who's dealing with a shoulder injury and hasn't been as efficient in the past three games. That said, the second-year pro out of UNC is still pretty good.
Maye is much more mobile than the average quarterback the Seahawks have faced this season. More than that, he's also been quite effective as a pocket-passer, even if his lesser competition has contributed to bulking up his numbers. Still, all good players have weaknesses, and, just like NFL researcher Tony Holzman-Escareno pointed out on X, he's not the exception to that rule.
The Seattle Seahawks need to put pressure on the Patriots' Drake Maye
Per Next Gen Stats, Maye has the highest passer rating in the league vs. the blitz (128.0) and under pressure (103.3). Those numbers drop to 100.6 when he's not blitzed (5th), 116.9 when facing pressure and blitzed (2nd), and 94.5 when he's pressured but not blitzed (4th). While that's still pretty solid, that's clearly when he's not at his best.
Conversely, the Seahawks' defense has the fifth-lowest blitz rate (22.3 percent), but the fourth-highest pressure rate (38.1 percent). They also rank third in pressure rate with blitz (48.2 percent) and fifth in pressure rate without blitz (35.2 percent). That number would have to go up in the Super Bowl to disrupt Maye's rhythm.
Of course, the game isn't always as simple as "this guy struggles under X circumstance, so we have to replicate those conditions over and over ad infinitum." The Seahawks have to keep him guessing with different looks and disguised coverage, but the blueprint is there.
Defensive coordinator Arden Dude and head coach Mike Macdonald had done an amazing job of slowing down all quarterbacks not named Baker Mayfield and Matthew Stafford this season. Maye doesn't necessarily fit that mold, and they will have an extra week of preparation to dissect his game.
Maye has a bright future, and this probably won't be his only trip to the Super Bowl. Unfortunately for him, he's going to face the most terrifying and dynamic defense to take the field in the NFL this season.