Morgan Moses has protected quarterbacks for 12 NFL seasons. He blocked for Kirk Cousins through Washington’s revolving door of uncertainty. He kept Lamar Jackson upright in Baltimore. He watched both struggle with pressure in different ways before becoming the players they are today.
Drake Maye, Moses says, arrived differently.
“Just calm, cool, and collected,” Moses told PFSN’s Ian Cummings ahead of Super Bowl LX. “Nothing gets to him under his skin. He loves the game, man. He’s always in there working at it, working at his craft.”
What Moses Sees That the Stats Don’t Show
The analytics crowd will tell you Maye led the NFL in completion percentage at 72% this season. They’ll point to his 4,394 passing yards, his 31 touchdowns, his MVP finalist status. All true. But Moses, who was the 10th-ranked offensive tackle according to PFSN’s OL Impact metric, watches something the numbers can’t capture: how Maye moves inside the pocket when pressure arrives.
“100%. The awareness, yeah,” Moses said when asked if Maye’s pocket management makes his job easier.
That awareness showed up in the AFC Championship against Denver, when Maye scrambled for a crucial first down that sealed the 10-7 win despite completing just 10 of 21 passes in snowy conditions. It showed up in the Divisional Round against Houston, where he threw three touchdowns while absorbing consistent pressure. The second-year quarterback has been sacked 15 times in three playoff games, yet the Patriots keep winning.
For Moses, 34, this Super Bowl appearance validates a career built on durability rather than accolades. He started 96 consecutive games for Washington from 2015 to 2020, an ironman streak rarely seen on the offensive line. He never made a Pro Bowl. He bounced from the Jets to the Ravens and back to the Jets before Mike Vrabel brought him to New England last March on a three-year, $24 million deal. The Patriots needed a veteran presence to anchor an offensive line featuring two rookies on the left side, including first-round pick Will Campbell.
“He’s the standard of what our offensive line is,” Moses said of Campbell. “Tough, technical, disciplined. You couldn’t ask anything more for a left tackle.”
The Macdonald Factor
Moses knows exactly what awaits Maye on Sunday. He spent 2022-23 in Baltimore while Mike Macdonald served as the Ravens’ defensive coordinator before taking the Seattle head coaching job. Young quarterbacks have gone 0-6 against Macdonald’s Seahawks, averaging just 168.8 passing yards and throwing nine interceptions against two touchdowns in those games.
“A lot of exotic looks,” Moses said of Macdonald’s scheme. “I had him when I was in Baltimore so I know a lot about him. What you see that’s in front of you might not be there.”
That deception has wrecked plenty of young signal-callers. Caleb Williams took seven sacks against Seattle this season. But Moses has seen how Maye processes pre-snap disguises, how he stays patient when the coverage rotates post-snap, how he keeps his eyes downfield when edge rushers win the corner.
The Seahawks recorded 47 sacks during the regular season, tied for seventh-most in the league. Boye Mafe and Byron Murphy will test the New England offensive line’s communication. If Maye takes four or more sacks, the Patriots are 7-7 in such games during his career. Three or fewer, and they’re 13-6.
But Moses isn’t worried about the numbers. He’s watched Maye handle everything this postseason has thrown at him, from top-five defenses to bad weather to the pressure of leading New England back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2018.
“I don’t think anybody’s worried about the nooks and crannies of what’s going on,” Moses told reporters earlier this week regarding Maye’s shoulder injury. “A lot of guys, when those lights turn on and that national anthem is going, they’ll forget about all the pain because it’ll be worth it at the end.”
Vrabel hired Moses to provide stability and leadership. NFL.com named him the Patriots’ unsung hero of 2025. On Sunday, he’ll line up at right tackle and do what he’s done throughout his 158 career starts: give his quarterback time to work.
The doubters may want to question whether a second-year passer can solve Macdonald’s defense on the biggest stage, but Moses has watched Maye grow up in 2025 and clearly has no such doubts.
