Drake Maye preparing for “magnitude of noise,” first game at altitude

Drake Maye has never thrown a football at altitude, that changes Sunday when he leads the Patriots into Denver for the AFC Championship Game against the Broncos

BY JAKE SHAPIRO

Jan 21, 2026, 2:47 PM

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Drake Maye has never thrown a football at altitude. That changes Sunday when he leads the New England Patriots into Empower Field at Mile High for the AFC Championship Game against the Denver Broncos.

“I haven’t thrown at altitude before. I’ve never been to Colorado or to a place with altitude where I’m throwing football at,” Maye said Wednesday. “But I think there is some adjustment to it. I think, you know, feeling out warmups and seeing what the deep ball is like, or kind of what the altitude does.”

The second-year quarterback plans to test the thin air during pregame. “Maybe throw a few extra deep ones, see how it is,” Maye said. “I think it’ll be pretty cool. Get a few extra yards on a deep ball.”

Maye did mention he’s keeping fatigue in mind, something he’ll be reminded of over and over as he walks through and around the stadium in Denver before the 1 p.m. kickoff.

The Patriots (16-3) advanced by beating the Houston Texans 28-16 in the Divisional Round. They’re riding a smothering defense that allowed just three points against Los Angeles in the Wild Card Round before forcing five turnovers from Houston. Now they face a Broncos defense that head coach Mike Vrabel called “the best defense that we’ve played to date.”

Denver (15-3) will counter with backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham after Bo Nix suffered a fractured ankle in the Broncos’ thrilling 33-30 overtime win over Buffalo. The Broncos have led the NFL in sacks for two consecutive seasons, a troubling matchup for Maye, who has fumbled more than any player in a single postseason in the last 45 years.

Maye acknowledged the ball security concerns.

“Just be mindful back there, and just know that my job is to protect the football,” he said. “I’ve got to have a timer in my head.”

The noise at Mile High may be a bigger concern for Maye than the altitude. The Patriots have relied on silent counts in hostile environments this season, including Buffalo and Baltimore, but Maye expects Sunday to test those limits.

“The magnitude of the noise will probably be something we haven’t seen this year yet,” Maye said. “It’s the AFC Championship, a road opponent that has had a history of winning Super Bowls and playing playoff games. It’ll be different than what we’ve heard.”

Still, Maye relishes the road environment.

“Coming off the field at their place with screaming fans and coming out with a win, I think it’s pretty cool,” he said. “Coach (Vrabel) has always been saying ‘road warrior.’ So we’re trying to find that one more time.”

It’s Maye’s first road playoff game, and Vrabel hasn’t won one since 2019 — a year when he led the Titans into Masstcosits for an upset win over the Pats, which featured Stidham as a backup quarterback.

Both teams enter winner-take-all mode for the second straight week, but this time the prize is a trip to the Super Bowl. Still, Maye isn’t treating the stakes any differently.

“It’s just another playoff game that we get a chance to go into a road environment that’s hostile against a great football team with great coaches, great defense, great players,” he said. “I don’t think we want to stop here. We want to keep going.”

The game will be played in frigid conditions — forecasters are warning it will be the coldest game of the year for the Broncos.