FOXBORO — The thirst for the next best thing is real across industries, and the media machine covering the NFL is no different.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It comes as little surprise, then, that despite Josh Allen only recently elevating into the “league’s best quarterback” stratosphere, people already want to know who will be the next Allen.<\/p>\n
For some, Patriots second-year quarterback Drake Maye fits the suit. Big frame. Big arm. Excellent athlete<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n But those are near-impossible shoes to fill. Allen is bigger, he’s proven to be a game-changing open-field runner, and he may have the strongest arm in the league.<\/p>\n That\u00a0hasn’t kept people<\/a>\u00a0from comparing<\/a>\u00a0the two<\/a>, though — especially since their production to this point in the season has been so similar, and because Maye’s second-year output to this point<\/a> has exceeded that which Allen posted as a second-year player back in 2019.<\/p>\n Patriots wideout Stefon Diggs has seen both up close, having played with Allen in Buffalo from 2020 to 2023. While acknowledging they’re different, he sees similarities.<\/p>\n “I was with young Josh,” Diggs said Wednesday. “He wasn’t that young. And obviously I’m with a young\u00a0Drake right now. I see the similarities. I try not to get into player comparisons at all. They’re two different young men, but I see why they say that. They play with that mindset, that dog mindset, and I see Drake coming along the same way.”<\/p>\n Maye and Allen have gotten to know each other, as both are represented by Creative Artists Agency. Maye explained this week that he’s been a fan of Allen’s game for some time.<\/p>\n “I got to know him through the same agency,” Maye said. “Got to know him and we share a lot of the same things. We like playing golf. He’s very down to earth, I like to say I’m down to earth. Great player. Golly, it’s fun watching him. He makes plays every week where you’re like, ‘Man, that’s pretty cool.’ He’s MVP of the league. Sadly to say it’s fun to watch him, but we gotta play him on Sunday so it’s a different mindset.”<\/p>\n Earlier this year, Allen sang Maye’s praises for his ability but also his authenticity. Perhaps he’s heard the comparisons between himself and Maye, prompting him to highlight Maye for who he is rather than how he stacks up to anyone else.<\/p>\n