Stephen A. Smith has taken a bold stance about New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye. He has called him a liar.
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Why did the longtime TV host do this? It started with comments from former NFL quarterback Cam Newton, who compared the Patriots to fool's gold on an episode of "First Take" and said that the team had played "sorry scrubs."
Maye responded by saying that he doesn't even know what show Newton is on and that he thinks they get paid to make certain comments. Smith took exception to this response and decided to proclaim the importance of the ESPN show.
"[Drake Maye] is a liar…First Take is the number one morning show..don’t tell me you a athlete and you don’t know that. Don’t tell me you a athlete and you don’t know that Cam Newton is on this show. You lying." – Stephen A. Smith pic.twitter.com/kaxxptSMpY
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 20, 2025
"(Drake Maye) is also a liar," Smith said after Ryan Clark listed some of Maye's positive attributes. "He's also a liar. First of all, it's not to brag. Listen, 'Pardon the Interruption' is the No. 1 show on ESPN spanning 20-plus decades.
"'First Take' is the No. 1 morning show 13 years and counting. April will be 14 years. Don't tell me you a athlete and you don't know that. Don't tell me you a athlete and you don't know that Cam Newton is on this show. You lying."
Regardless of Smith's opinion, Maye and the Mike Vrabel-led Patriots are in the middle of a winning season. They have an NFL-best 9-2 record and the clear path the AFC East title.
The second-year quarterback leads the NFL with a 71.9 completion percentage (more than two games played) and 2,836 passing yards. He is fourth in passing touchdowns with 20, and second in passer rating with 113.2.
And as Maye explained when asked about Newton's "fool's gold" comments, he doesn't care about the opinions outside of the New England Patriots facility.
"I'm just worried about what people in our organization think, and worry about (what) we think and what my teammates think," Maye said. "People are going to have different opinions. I'm just going out there on Sunday and worrying about ourselves."
