When you sack a quarterback twice in a single season, you get to know his game pretty well. When you later become his teammate, those memories take on new meaning. That's exactly the story unfolding for New England Patriots defensive end Dre'Mont Jones and quarterback Drake Maye.

Jones, who played against Maye last season while splitting time between the Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens, had nothing but praise for his new signal-caller during Thursday's press conference. "Drake's a hell of a quarterback," Jones said, reflecting on the 2025 AP NFL MVP runner-up. "He gave us a lot of problems."

The memory that stands out most for Jones came during a critical moment in Baltimore. "The memory that burns in my head is when we had him on 4th-and-3, and he threw that out route. I thought we had him stopped to ice the game. That just lets you know how talented of a quarterback he is."

Jones made his presence felt against Maye in both meetings last season, recording two of his seven sacks in those matchups—one in Week 7 with the Titans and another in Week 16 with the Ravens. But Maye got the last laugh, leading the Patriots to victory in both contests. The young quarterback posted a season-high 91.3% completion rate against Tennessee and followed it up with 380 passing yards against Baltimore, another season best for the second-team All-Pro.

Now, Jones has a front-row seat to Maye's accuracy and poise from the practice field rather than the opposing sideline. The Ohio State product is eager to flip the script in 2026, using his pass-rushing skills to get opposing offenses off the field and give Maye more opportunities to work his magic on offense.

For Patriots fans, it's the kind of teammate-to-teammate respect that builds championship chemistry—and makes for great stories on game day.