Washington Commanders Draft Prospect QB Drake Maye 'Spinning it Great' at Pro Day

With his Pro Day in the books North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye feels he put on a solid show for NFL teams including the Washington Commanders.

Oct 21, 2023; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Drake Maye (10) / Nell Redmond-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Commanders made their way around the Pro Day circuit and hit each of the top three quarterback's peroformances after Caleb Williams (USC), Jayden Daniels (LSU), an Drake Maye (UNC) all chose to not work out in front of scouts at the NFL Scouting Combine.

Maye was the last of those three to showcase his Pro Day script to the Commanders, and when you add in Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy he was the fourth passer on display in under a month.

While we won't get the official story on what Washington is thinking of Maye's performance until late April if the team drafts him the quarterback himself thought he did some good things in his final opportunity to show his stuff to NFL decision-makers.

Oct 21, 2023; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Drake Maye (10) / Nell Redmond-USA TODAY Sports

“I thought I threw well,” Maye said following his drills according to Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer. “I thought I was spinning it great — a few I wish I had back. Always, when you have 70 throws, you’re going to miss a few. That was the goal: to be perfect. I didn’t accomplish that but I thought I threw it well, I think the guys did a great job, and I just tried to show different things. Moving on the run, different drops, and just throwing it with accuracy.”

Kaye was on ground for North Carolina's Pro Day that featured more than 60 throws by the Tar Heels' star quarterback and chronicled the day for The Charlotte Observer.

In it, Kaye describes a performance that started with about 22 straight completed passes before one hit the playing surface, and as impressive as that run might have been, it's what happened when he started to miss that stands out the most.

When he his his rough patch, as all NFL quarterbacks will do, Maye didn't shrink away from the pressure and build on the miscues. Instead, he showed the observing crowd he has standards, and didn't settle for simply going through the work out.

At one point, following a misfired throw, Maye held a brief conference with receiver Devontez Walker and the two decide to run the play again. This time, they connect.

In that moment, you get a glimpse of an NFL prospect not willing to be good enough, but striving to get it right every time.

“It just shows how competitive he is,” Walker said of Maye. “Dude never wants to lose. You can see it in his eyes in the huddle when we’re out there in games and things like that. When we miss on a lot of stuff, we’re able to go to the sideline — he’s able to come up to me, as I’m able to come up to him — and just talk about it.”

There was money on the line at North Carolina's Pro Day on Thursday, and in the eyes of many Maye either made some or at least secured what he's already projected to get.

The next time he throws a football with money on the line it'll be for an NFL team, as a first-year quarterback likely being eyed as the savior of a franchise in need of saving.

It might be the Washington Commanders, and it might not, but at the very least we know general manager Adam Peters and coach Dan Quinn have plenty to cover, discuss, and analyze in the next four weeks or so before they decide whether or not Maye is the right man for their job.