SERBY’S SUNDAY Q& A WITH ... MARCUS MAYE

Rookie second-round Jets safety Marcus Maye tackled some Q&A with Post columnist Steve Serby.

Q: What is your on-field mentality?

A: You gotta have like an assassin mentality. Just being back there deep, away from the line of scrimmage, you see more than what everybody else sees. They can’t see you all the time.

Q: Explain what that means on the football field.

A: You gotta be able to make guys fear you. You gotta make them feel your presence. You catch a running back in the hole, or you catch someone on the sideline, you deliver a good hit across the middle, just flying around making plays, making tackles everywhere. Just being that guy on the field that’s name’s always getting called, and that’s everywhere around the ball.

Q: Which quarterbacks do you want to intercept?

A: You always want to go against the great quarterbacks. You start at the top of the list with Tom [Brady], and you work your way down. But any quarterback that I’m going against, obviously my main goal is to pick him off, so it doesn’t matter who it is.

Q: You’re playing the Patriots at home next Sunday. What would a pick of Brady in that scenario be like?

A: Man, it’d be awesome (smile). It’d be a dream come true. You see everything happen before it actually happens, so to actually make it happen would definitely be a sweet feeling.

Q: Do you think this team can challenge for the AFC East title?

A: Definitely. I mean, I feel like we have all the pieces. We got a great coaching staff. The team loves each other, so I don’t see why not. We love coming to work every day, and every time we step out on the field even in practice, it’s a ton of energy and stuff like that.

Q: This team was called the worst team in football before the season.

A: The outside noise, it is what it is, we couldn’t control that. We knew what we had to do every day in practice, every day in the weight room and every day in the meeting room.

Q: Describe Jets fans.

A: Oh, I love ’em. I mean, they’re everywhere. As soon as I got my name called, I feel like I got a lot of love from New York right away.

Q: What is it like playing on the New York stage?

A: It doesn’t get any bigger than that, or unless you’re out in L.A. or something like that. But just being in New York City with all the media, all the people, all the attention, and you do well, it could be good for you,

Q; What do you think of Manhattan?

A: I like it. The energy there is unbelievable. Whatever you want to find in the city, you can do it. Here from Florida,Florida, used to the beaches andd stuffff liklike that,h to coming up here, and everything’s (chuckle) built upwards. It’s different, but it’s good, it’s fun.

Q: What are your personal goals?

A: I want to be the best safety this year. Have the best stats. Have the most impact for his team and stuff like that. ... Be that safety that my teams need me to be.

Q: How does your style differ from first-round pick Jamal Adams’ style?

A: I feel like we’re both versatile. Jamal’s a very aggressive downhill guy. You put him close to the ball and not much is gonna get by him. You put him covering a tight end, think he’s gonna do that. I play more the middle field. I roam sideline to sideline, working on angles, seeing routes develop, making a break on the ball before the quarterback’s going, reading the quarterback.

Q: Describe coach Todd Bowles.

A: He’s quiet but (smile), he can go from zero to 100 real quick.

Q: Give me an example.

A: Say you don’t make the right check or something like that, and it’s something that he repeated in the meeting room or something like that, and you go on the field and mess it up. ... If you’re not gonna get it after the first two tries, he’s gonna say something.

Q: He played safety. Have you ever watched clips of him?

A: I haven’t actually yet, I need to, actually. I’m gonna tell him probably next week to bbringi me some clipsli so I can watch him.

Q: Where did the nickname “All Day Maye” start?

A: Brian Poole gave me All Day Maye my freshman year in college [Florida]. Maye Day started in high school. It was a news reporter: I had made a play in high school, and he was just like, “Maye Day, Maye Day, Maye Day.” I guess I just came out of nowhere and made the play.

Q: Favorite college football memory?

A: Probably [Antonio] Callaway scoring a lastsecond touchdown against Tennessee two years ago [a 63-yard touchdown pass to Will Grier with 1:26 left]. ... He had a ffourth-hdownd play,l ffourth-handd like-[14]. ... That’s probably my most, like, “Wow,” moment in college football.

Q: How about a personal “wow” moment?

A: Probably the Ole Miss game. We played them in the Swamp. They were ranked No. [3] in the country. I had a pretty good game that game [a 38-10 win].

Q: You played against rookie Giants tight end Evan Engram, who went to Ole Miss, in college.

A: He’s one of those guys you can’t go to sleep on. He’s a tight end, but he runs like a receiver. He’s a tight end, but he catches like a receiver. He can put his hand in the dirt, or he can Sydney up out wide like a receiver. He’s very versatile, you can move him around, do a lot with him.

Q: What do you remember about rookie receiver ArDarius Stewart from playing against Alabama?

A: (Loud enough for Stewart to hear in the adjacent locker) He was all right. ... He wasn’t the best, but ... no I’m just kidding. He was a great player, he was very aggressive. They had a lot of receivers at ’Bama, but as far as special teams, jet sweeps, reverses, deep balls, he did it all for ’Bama.

Q: What is your off-the-field personality?

A: I’m a relaxed guy — watch TV, hahang out ... play “[NBA] 2K” and “MMadden” every now and then.

Q: Who was your boyhood idol?id

A: I enjoyed watching Ed Reed a lolot. Just the way he controlled the middle of the field, his presence on the field. He was everywhere making plays. He was always that guguy that you type in on the compuputer just to look at his highlights anand stuff like that.

Q: You also played running backba in high school. Were thereth any running backs you admired?ad

A: I was a fan of Reggie Bush when hhe was in college coming out. The type of threat he is with the ball in his hands. Q: Tell me about your game against St. Pete Catholic — 326 rushing yards, five TDs. You must have felt like Superman that day.

A: (Smile) That was probably one of my crazy-stat games. ... I think like 10-plus tackles that game. ... I felt good that day. The way it was just rolling ... it definitely felt good.

Q: What drives you?

A: I love the game. I don’t know where I would be if I wasn’t playing football. Football allowed me to do a lot of things in life for me and my family. Just the love of the game that I have, the passion for it — I just want to be great at the end of the day. Once it’s all said and done, you talk about my name in football, I want to be that guy that they talk about.

Q: Do you ever dream about a Hall of Fame career?

A: Oh yeah, definitely. I feel like if you’re not playing to be at that level at the end of the day? You’re selling yourself short. You always want to be the best at whatever you do. It doesn’t even have to be football or sports. It could be anything.

Q: Three dinner guests?

A: Michael Jackson, Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali.

Q: Favorite movie?

A: “Bad Boys 2.”

Q: Favorite actor? A: Denzel [Washington]. Q: What would your message to Jets fans be about Marcus Maye and about this team?

A: It’s all up from here. And then for me, it’s I love the city. I look forward to stepping out on the field every Sunday with that Jets uniform on.

Q: What would you tell them about the AFC East?

A: You can get used to hearing and talking about the Jets a lot from here on out, just because, like I said, we’re only looking to go one direction from here. And that’s up.