Rookie quarterback Drake Maye led the New England Patriots to a touchdown, his first in the NFL. There may not be many touchdowns or much from Maye at the start of the regular season for the Patriots.
New England is being cautious with the third overall pick. Part of that is because the infrastructure around Maye is not conducive to a rookie quarterback’s success. Maye hasn’t started any preseason games and is unlikely to start in Week 1 of the regular season. There will be plenty of calls for him to start in the season opener. But Patriots fans will most likely have to wait, hopefully and patiently.
On Thursday night against the Philadelphia Eagles, Maye got more playing time than he did in an abbreviated appearance in the preseason opener. Maye completed 6 of 11 passes for 47 yards in two quarters of work. He had some nice throws and a touchdown run on a read option near the goal line.
Patriots fans are accustomed to greatness from quarterbacks, but not necessarily quarterbacks who can make plays running the ball.
Maye was fine in the Patriots’ second preseason game. He looked good on a few throws. He threw too high on a couple, including a second-and-11 pass where he hesitated before releasing the ball. For Patriots fans, it was nice to see him on more than a few plays. His best throw might have been an incomplete pass. Early in the third quarter, he threw deep to rookie Javon Baker just over 50 yards in the air. He threw it easily and it was a nice throw, but Baker barely missed a diving catch.
The important thing was the launch itself, which was good. Maye did nothing that disappointed.
Maye didn’t play much in the preseason opener. He threw just three passes. The reason Patriots coach Jerod Mayo gave for Maye’s lack of action was that he wanted the rookie to work primarily with the starting line. That speaks to the Patriots’ issues; they don’t have enough depth to adequately support a rookie quarterback. That’s one reason Jacoby Brissett is expected to begin the regular season as New England’s starter. Brissett started Thursday night against the Eagles and played the first three series.
Maye’s first drive was solid. On third-and-five, he made a nice pass on a drive route to Baker for a first down. He made an athletic play to get the ball away under immediate pressure and completed it for a gain. On a third down later in the drive, he threw a nice deep pass, but it got away from Baker at the sideline. Baker was forced out of bounds on his route anyway, so it wouldn’t have counted. Still, it was a nice throw from the rookie. The drive ended in a field goal, which wasn’t the worst outcome for Maye or the Patriots.
As the Patriots began rotating offensive linemen on Maye’s next drive, the plays seemed to become safer in protecting Maye, with more runs, quick throws, and a screen (which was perfectly timed on third-and-11 and gained 23 yards).
Maye started the second half. He started with a fumble from center. He had a nice deep pass to Baker that was incomplete. He had a couple of wild throws under pressure that hurt his stats. He got sacked on third-and-10, which must have made the Patriots nervous. That was his last play of the night.
Until the Patriots decide to give Maye the starting job in the regular season, it will be difficult to evaluate him. He hasn’t done enough in the preseason to draw any broad conclusions. That will come later.
There isn’t much for Patriots fans to be excited about this season. Brissett is a reasonable veteran quarterback, but he won’t elevate the offense. He threw a terrible interception into the end zone on Thursday night and nearly threw another under pressure on the next drive. The offense’s performance in joint practices against the Eagles this week was reportedly pretty bad, with the Patriots allowing too many sacks. The Patriots’ best player was probably edge defender Mathew Judon, and he was just traded to the Atlanta Falcons for a third-round pick. The Patriots are a good bet to end up with the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
But Maye offers something to look forward to this season. He will eventually play, and the Patriots hope his confidence isn’t shattered in a terrible environment. Maye has the skills to get the Patriots out of the doldrums, eventually.
When the Patriots decide to make the trade, we’ll have our first real chance to see if New England has its quarterback of the future.