Did Drake Maye Finished the Patriots' Painful Brady Hangover?
It's hard not to sympathize with the Browns, New York Jets, and Chicago Bears. Those franchises have endured years in QB uncertainty, rotating through prospects and temporary starters. Meanwhile, after only half a decade of searching, the New England Patriots – the after-Brady Patriots – seem to have discovered the guy.
Five years. From Brady to Cam Newton to Mac Jones to Bailey Zappe to Maye’s first choppy season to this: a young quarterback who looks like a top-five starter and MVP candidate.
Last week was his breakout: a victory away in Orchard Park, where Maye matched throws with the Bills' star and surpassed the current MVP in the final period. But the Saints game on Sunday may have been even more impressive. Coming off an upset win over the division leaders, a visit to a lousy Saints team had risk of a slump. And the Saints teased an upset. They ripped off a large gain on the opening snap of the game, before faltering in the red zone and opting for a field goal. It took Maye just four snaps to answer, uncorking a 53-yard deep ball to Pop Douglas for the go-ahead touchdown.
Drake Maye goes 53 yards deep to Pop Douglas!
It was Maye in peak form, navigating the protection to deliver a strike deep. From there, he kept pushing: Maye torched the Saints in every area of the playing surface. His opening two quarters was so searing that his alma mater was compelled to post. He finished 18-of-26 for 261 yards with three scores and no turnovers. And it could have been more if not for a trio of debatable referee decisions.
It was his fifth straight game with over 200 yards and a QB rating above 100. Only the Chiefs' star, Dak Prescott, and the Hall of Famer have ever done that at 23 years old or less.
The top QBs convert tough away matches into routine victories. They avoid risky throws, keep the offense chugging and deliver key passes on important plays. The Patriots needed every bit of Maye's flawless play to narrowly defeat the Saints. They couldn’t run the ball against a strong defensive line. Their defense allowed multiple chunk plays. This was a game that had to be won by Maye’s right arm. And he delivered under fire.
Maye took hits a several times and tackled once, but the pressure he faced was constant. It didn’t matter. Maye threw all three touchdown passes under pressure, with all three traveling 20 yards or more in the air.
It's beyond statistics. It’s Maye's demeanor. He’s self-assured and calm in the protection, scanning options to locate receivers. When needed, he can run and create with his legs. As a first-year player, he was a somewhat erratic, fleeing the pocket at the first sign of trouble. But this season, he’s been more like Brady, conforming to the confines of the scheme and delivering the ball where it needs to go quickly.
For the season, Maye is up to 10 TD passes, two rushing touchdowns and just two interceptions. He’s halved his Turnover Worthy Play rate from his debut season, when he was constantly trying to create plays out of broken plays. Currently, he’s picking his moments. He has avoided a turnover-worthy play in three outings.
Coming out of college, Maye was billed as a big-armed bomber. Scouts questioned his capacity to read complex defenses and operate a complex offense. Overly casual. Too reckless. But the offensive coordinator, in his third stint as Patriots offensive coordinator, has unleashed the entire range of his playbook. Maye isn’t being limited; he’s being trusted. The Patriots are shapeshifting each week once more, and Maye is leading the offense like an experienced veteran.
His development has sped up the Patriots’ timeline. If there were to be second-year progress, you expected it would be a gradual process. There would still be the spectacular passes, while Maye spent the season trying to reduce his mental errors in half. That would be improvement. In contrast, Maye has smashed expectations. Six matches into his sophomore year, he’s become one of the NFL's top players – and he’s transformed the Patriots division contenders once more.
Chicago supporters will find solace in seeing the progress of Caleb Williams. But if you’re a Cleveland or New York follower, you have to wince. Because this is the ideal scenario when a franchise quarterback arrives. And for the rest of the league’s quarterback-starved franchises, it’s yet another reminder of how harsh and repetitive this sport can be. The Patriots moved from the greatest of all time to a possible great in half a decade. Some teams spend a 25 years searching – and never locate anyone.
Securing a franchise QB is about more than victories. It changes the identity of a fan base and franchise. For two decades, the Patriots enjoyed the privileged existence. But the last few seasons have been about failing to build a bridge from Tom Brady to whatever would come next. They’ve found the answer now. Get ready for your Masshole friends to rediscover their Brady-era bluster.
Player of the Week
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, wide receiver, Seattle Seahawks. Against a stifling Jaguars defense, Seattle's sole option was for Sam Darnold to look for JSN, constantly. The wideout answered with eight receptions for over 150 yards and a score on 13 targets, as the Seahawks snuck past the Jags 20-12. The Seahawks' D led the way, pressuring Trevor Lawrence and sacking him a year-high seven times. But it was Smith-Njigba who supported the Seahawks’ offense, accounting for all 117 of the Seahawks’ initial 117 yards via passing. That featured a 61-yard touchdown and maybe the nastiest route we’ll see from a receiver all year.
JSN outmaneuvered new Jaguars corner Greg Newsome on his very first snap with his new team – a 61-yard touchdown.
Video of the Week
The Dolphins were on the wrong side of another disappointing, last-minute loss. They gained a narrow lead over the Chargers with under a minute remaining, after Tua Tagovailoa found Darren Waller for his fourth score of the season. The Chargers returned a 40-yard kickoff on the following kick. From there, the Chargers' QB and his receiver took over.
INCREDIBLE PLAY FROM HERBERT AND MCCONKEY.
Hoo boy. That is brutal. Somehow, Herbert was able to evade two oncoming pass-rushers, dodging the initial before throwing the second to the ground. He found his target in the short area, who put a Dolphins’ corner on skates to advance in range for the winning field goal.
It sums up the Chargers’ season: narrowly winning on the excellence of their QB and his surrounding playmakers as his protection struggles. And it sums up the Dolphins’ defense, too: a pass-rush that can't complete sacks and a floundering secondary. With the loss, the Dolphins fell to 1-5. Painful late-game failures have become common for the Dolphins. With another rough loss, he’s losing time to save his job.
Stat of the Week
Minus-10. That’s the passing yardage the Jets' QB ended with in the New York Jets' 13-11 loss to the Broncos in the UK. It’s the fewest in any game since the Chargers had negative 19 in the late 90s. Back then, the Chargers started Ryan Leaf making his third game. Fields was in his 49th.
We know what Fields is now: an elite rusher who struggles to read the {passing game|pass
