Drake Maye Was Encouraging

By Steve Atkinson 

The offense of the New England Patriots looked the same other than Drake Maye. They still can’t and won’t be able to block on the offensive line for the rest of the season. The receivers aren’t top-notch and couldn’t run the ball in the loss against Houston. Drake Maye with the offense put up more points (21) than Jacoby Brissett within the first six weeks of the season.

Drake Maye Looked Good Despite The Loss

Now, should they have started Drake Maye? Probably not to see how he adapts to NFL culture and Jacoby Brissett is someone that won’t turn the ball over. But the offense was lost so the Patriots made a panic move to start Drake Maye. Maye spoke after the game:

Yeah, we preach fast starts, and I wouldn’t say it’s very pleasing when you start off with a turnover in the red zone to start the second half and start out with a three-and-out in the first drive. Little things like that that we’re emphasizing on offense, and we just haven’t been able to execute. I think the things that have come back are what we’re emphasizing, and that starts with me. We need to execute. Kind of got going there a little bit, made some throws that the guys made some plays, and like I said, we got guys that can make plays, and the O-line is up there battling their butt off and getting injured, coming back and always checking on me. Those guys fought their butts off tonight

The last time we saw good quarterback play from a rookie like yesterday was in 2021. I don’t count Bailey Zappe because he had a bad attitude, thinking he was better than everyone else. Maye sounds humble and knows he’s in a good spot. He made some great throws, especially to Boutte for his first touchdown when the stadium erupted. The only thing Maye has that Mac Jones didn’t was that Maye can move better and is faster than Jones. But there is no excuse for what Belichick did to Mac Jones in 2022, putting Matt Patricia in charge of the offense. A defensive coach will never be in charge of Drake Maye, period.

The offensive line has to be better to protect Drake Maye

If the offensive line can be better and they get a number one receiver, they could take off with Drake Maye. Same if they got an offensive line for Mac Jones and a number one receiver, the Patriots would be in a better position. But here we are with Maye and hopefully, Eliot Wolf can put a decent line around him. They need to get a receiver in the offseason, just like Bill needed to do with Mac after 2021. Belichick didn’t, so will Eliot Wolf change that and help his young quarterback?

Jerod Mayo said something after the game you’d never hear Belichick say about Mac Jones.”

Yeah, not really the coaching staff. Look, we feel like crap right now, and I would say just for a rookie quarterback to go out there and do some good things, do some good things – I just felt like we could have did a better job supporting him.

The last line, “We could have done a better job supporting him,” would Belichick say those words about Mac Jones every day when his buddy Patricia was the offensive coordinator? Or last year when Bill O’Brien was the offensive coordinator? No, he threw Mac Jones under the bus and caused a divide in the locker room. Mayo is trying to do the opposite by saying they need to support the quarterback better