Callahan: The toughest test of Drake Maye’s football life is coming Sunday

FOXBORO Drake Maye meet Myles Garrett He s a terror A monster who enjoys every Sunday like it s Halloween and sacks of quarterbacks like candy He s unblockable relentless a force you ve never faced before Just ask your center He s a different breed a shrugging Garrett Bradbury commented Wednesday in front of his locker I don t think there s anyone in the league better than him at his position Bradbury last battled Garrett in a joint practice two summers ago His memories of that day from a practice with no stakes and no real consequences still sound haunted Even in training camp you re like Oh my gosh ' he disclosed So ignore Garrett s one sack over his last four games and five total this year Despite all the double-teams and chips and extra efforts offenses have made to build a dam in front of him the four-time All-Pro is still latest through Garrett ranks among the NFL s leaders in pressure rate and pass-rush win rate all the majority telling stats With a rookie protecting your blindside Sunday he will be in a word inevitable I ve gotta have a good week of preparation Will Campbell revealed We all do Here s the worst news of all for Maye and the rest of the Patriots offense Garrett is just the tip of the spear The Browns are first in yards allowed third by EPA and fifth per DVOA because of the pieces they ve put around their future Hall of Famer Free-agent addition Maliek Collins somehow has become the defensive tackle version of Garrett boasting similar rankings in all advanced pass-rush metrics Collins is no doubt licking his chops studying tape of another Patriots rookie left guard Jared Wilson who allowed two sacks last weekend And then there s Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward two hard-hitting safeties a swarm of the fastest linebackers in football and on and on and on The bottom line is this the Browns are the best defense Maye has ever seen and the Maye we see next will be the bulk telling version yet Because it was one thing to chew up the Titans and Saints and the Bills for a half and spit them all out The Browns like Garrett are a different breed Even throwing short to beat pressure won t be so easy New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye runs for a first down against Tennessee Titans linebacker Jihad Ward during the second half of an NFL football challenge Sunday Oct in Nashville Tenn AP Photo George Walker IV It s a lot of speed a lot of disruption They don t give you a lot of time to make decisions Pats coach Mike Vrabel reported And then there s enough changeups in there that you just have to be good passing You have to be sound can t hold on to the ball Coverage is sticky and the linebackers are fast Running the ball Forget about it The Patriots may have enjoyed a nice break in Tennessee where running lanes in the end mercifully appeared for their grounded ground attack and they rumbled for a season-high yards But the Browns should foist this battle squarely on Maye s shoulders They re the best against the run by yards allowed per rush and DVOA and second by EPA Now enough numbers This is about feel pressure physicality toughness Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz worked on two of Vrabel s staffs in Tennessee and before that Bill Belichick s old crew in Cleveland He s among the largest part experienced defensive coaches in the league Schwartz s defense is much like Vrabel s and before that Belichick s steeped in violence and designed to confuse quarterbacks They do a good job of disguising this kind of junk Cover- look where the deep safety comes in and plays the middle I think Ronnie Hickman caught a pick last week on it Maye noted Wednesday So they do a good job of making plays out of it It s something that you ve got to be aware of and know when it looks like man coverage they go to zone Throughout all downs they do a good job of it In that same press conference Maye revealed that hitting the hole shot AKA the intermediate window along the sideline against Cover is among his favorite throws Think the Browns heard that Related Articles Drake Maye s special talent standing out to Patriots coaches teammates Patriots-Browns injury overview Stefon Diggs among starters listed Wednesday Stefon Diggs explains importance of leadership role with Patriots Why Patriots added very productive pass rusher through waivers Former Patriots advance in voting process for Pro Football Hall of Fame It s not that Cleveland should win The Browns rightfully are slated as touchdown underdogs coming into Foxboro But Garrett Collins Ward and Co will be unafraid because they know they re capable of trashing Maye s burgeoning MVP campaign They will harass him They will hound his receivers They will try to punk his offensive line and down after down they will test Maye s willingness to accept that sometimes less is more Last weekend Maye risked far too much far too often in Tennessee where he took unnecessary hits instead of throwing the ball away For now he sounds ready to swallow a minimal throwaways and bad drives in the name of playing safe football against Cleveland Just know the outlets Maye noted We talk about outlets scramble throwaways and just being smart with the football The Browns do a good job of going after the football especially Myles in his career But what happens when Garrett is breathing down Maye s neck and a receiver pops open in the flat Will he danger cocking his arm for a four-yard completion that might instead lead to a fumble Will he slide when Collins is trying to clobber him at the outset of another scramble Will he pass his toughest test yet