Drake Maye will likely be a top-three pick in April’s NFL Draft.

The former North Carolina quarterback is firmly in the top group alongside LSU’s Jayden Daniels and USC’s Caleb Williams. Williams is widely regarded as the likely No. 1 pick, but there are some who believe it’s not a foregone conclusion the 2022 Heisman winner will be the pick for the Chicago Bears.

On the Pat McAfee Show on Thursday, former NFL defensive back Darius Butler said Maye has the right disposition to be the No. 1 overall choice. And Dan Orlovsky said once again he could see Maye going in the top spot.

“We know what he is. You wouldn’t be in the conversation to be one of the top picks if you didn’t have the talent,” Butler said after spending roughly five hours with Maye and his family. “It’s more than what happens on the field.”

Butler continued: “When you’re coming into the locker room as a top-three pick, which we assume he’ll be, a lot of things are gonna be handed to him. You’re gonna be the quarterback of the team. You’re gonna have to be in that leadership role. Those things, I think he fits that bill. When teams sit down with him and the people around him as well — his family, his representation — I think they’ll fall in love with him.”

Maye was a Freshman All-American and swept the ACC’s player of the year awards (Overall Player, Offensive, Offensive Rookie, and Overall Rookie) in 2022. He burst onto the scene in his redshirt freshman season with 4,321 yards and 38 touchdowns through the air.

He finished his UNC career with 63 passing touchdowns, 16 rushing touchdowns, and 9,227 yards in 30 career appearances.

Orlovsky said on McAfee’s show earlier this week he believes the right move for the Bears is to trade Justin Fields and use the top pick to take a quarterback. The betting favorite to go No. 1 remains Williams, but Orlovsky believes the pre-draft process will lead some to start poking holes in Williams’ case.

Maye also brings a frame — 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds — to the table that perfectly fits the modern quarterback profile.

“I called some of Drake’s games in college. He’s Big Ben (Roethlisberger) to me,” Orvlosky said. “He’s a little bit not refined. He’s sloppy mechanically at times. That’s always good because you can’t teach the stuff that Big Ben had, you can’t teach the stuff that Josh (Allen) has. You can always get guys mechanically to be more consistent.”

The NFL Scouting Combine (Feb. 26 – March 4) should provide some clarity on how teams view Williams. Interviews will take place. Stories will come out. If teams have questions about the off-field aspects of Williams’ game, it’ll become clear. At the same time, Maye and Daniels will be able to make their case for the top spot.