FOXBOROUGH — Drake Maye didn’t want to jinx it.
Asked Thursday about not throwing an interception all summer, he smiled.
“I think it’s one of those things where I’m trying to take care of the football,” said the 22-year-old quarterback. “Maybe [the defense] could have had a few here and there. I think [Jabrill Peppers] should have had one in the first practice. I joked with him about it.
“But yeah, I think that’s a goal of ours, to protect the football. Not trying to — like I said — [jinx] the perfect game or no-hitter. But I think that’s part of it. I’m not scared to throw it. I’m still not gunshy.“
To his point, Maye and the offense have been working on all varieties of throws through the first eight practices of training camp. The quarterback has aired it out with the likes of wide receiver DeMario Douglas, and also worked the short and intermediate game with running back TreVeyon Henderson, tight end Hunter Henry, and wide receiver Stefon Diggs. Through it all, Maye’s accuracy has stood out, regardless of the target.
That includes his work during Thursday’s walkthrough. While the intensity was nowhere near what it was during the steamy, padded practices on Monday and Tuesday, the control was still there for the second-year quarterback.
“That’s what you hope,” Maye said after a relatively uneventful workout that ran roughly 90 minutes under partly cloudy skies. “Trying to take the next steps as we go. And I think the real test is when the games come and we get these joint practices. So, I’m looking forward. I’m proud of the work we’ve done and I feel good. I feel like we’re in a good spot. But I think there’s still a lot of work left.”
Maye acknowledged that he may have forced some throws into tighter windows during spring workouts, and those may have resulted in picks. That included a much-ballyhooed May OTA in which he threw four interceptions in one open practice, two to Christian Gonzalez.
“I think I did a little bit of that in the spring — threw in some tighter windows, and threw a little more interceptions,” Maye said. “But that’s what you’re out here for. Can this work? Or can this work against these guys at this level?”
One of the things that dogged Maye’s progression in 2024 was an occasional misfire, some of which ended up costing the Patriots games. But a solid summer has created some momentum for Maye and the offense.
“Keep building,” he said. “Keep building the chemistry. [There are] throws that I wish I had back — I missed some touchdowns two practices ago in the red zone. But that’s what you’re out here for. I hurt myself by trying to make those throws and make the easy ones, but that’s about timing.
“I think we’re coming together. Jelling nicely. We have a good look with our defense. They have some good players over there, so we’re getting a good look. We just have to keep building it in joint practices and keep going.”
One player who has helped make things easier for Maye’s accuracy numbers is Diggs. The veteran receiver failed to catch only two of the balls thrown in his direction during 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 work through the first seven practices.
“He’s just attacking the football,” Maye said of Diggs, who caught a pair of touchdown passes from the quarterback in red-zone work Tuesday. “A guy like that, of his stature, he’s caught a lot of touchdowns in this league and made a lot of big plays. He wants to go get the football. He tells me all the time, ‘If the ball is in the air, it’s going to be mine.’ So, I think it’s comforting hearing that from those guys. And I think that’s kind of starting to become something the receiver room, that’s the mind-set. ‘The ball is in the air, go get it.’ ”
This summer hasn’t been perfect for Maye. The offensive line remains a work in progress, as there are several possibilities at center and left guard. And there have been some botched center-quarterback exchanges — Maye said Thursday “it’s not a big issue.”
“I think those guys are battling. We’re using different cadences, we’re using different calls,” he said. “They’re really getting a good grasp of it. I’m proud of those guys up front. We’ve got a next-man-up mentality. Some guys are getting banged up and some guys are fighting through injuries. Just part of the position. They don’t get enough love, ever.”
In the end, even if the offensive line is only marginally better than it was last year, for a quarterback who showed an occasional penchant for turnovers as a rookie — 10 interceptions in 13 games — his early accuracy bodes well.
“I think I like where we’re at,” Maye said. “We’re practicing hard. We’re coming out here in these walkthroughs and focusing on details. I think there’s going to be times where there’s days out here we didn’t feel like we had as good a practice as we wanted. But right now I feel like we’ve got a good head of steam going.”
Christopher Price can be reached at christopher.price@globe.com. Follow him on Bluesky at christopherprice.bsky.social.