Drake Maye looks the part. Two starts in, he looks like he’s going to be the Patriots franchise quarterback for quite some time.
But as impressive as he might be, as much as he continues to develop, learn and occasionally wow us with his play, he’s powerless to help the 2024 team.
Quarterbacks can’t play defense. They also can’t make up for a play caller who has no feel for the game. Or a special teams unit that falls asleep on a punt return.
While Maye didn’t exactly light up the scoreboard in a 32-16 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in London, and was fortunate to avoid throwing a couple of picks, he did once again provide a measure of hope for the future.
For the past two games, he’s showcased the kind of playmaking ability that is a trademark of elite quarterback play in the NFL. He continues to be poised in the face of a pass rush, and incredibly smart knowing when to throw, and when to tuck the ball in.
He was downright surgical during the Patriots opening drive touchdown. He was also a big play magician on the Patriots 94-yard march during a fourth-quarter touchdown drive.
Too bad he couldn’t plug the holes in the middle of the Patriots defensive front.
Maye wasn’t on the field when the Jaguars absolutely bullied the Patriots, running the ball down their collective throats 17 straight times during three consecutive series between the third and fourth quarter.
Wasn’t that supposed to be at the heart of the Patriots identity? Dominating the line of scrimmage?
Maye also wasn’t the one who decided it was important to try and establish the run offensively, after the rookie quarterback moved the ball up and down the field the first two series using his considerable arm talent.
That falls on Alex Van Pelt.
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After Maye led the offense to two scores on their first two drives, Van Pelt went conservative trying to get both Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson going. Attempted runs on first down during the next two drives set up long yardage situations on second and down, as opposed to having manageable situations for the young quarterback.
Van Pelt was much more creative on the opening two drives, then lapsed into a safety shell – while Maye was in a groove, delivering into tight windows. Yes, the Patriots had a lead, but 10-0 was no reason to take the foot off the gas. It was shortsighted to go conservative at that point.
That led to three straight three and outs, while the Jaguars were running roughshod over the Patriots defense en route to taking over the lead, and the ballgame.
Instead of letting Maye continue to deal, it was a bunch of dump offs on pass plays. Ja’Lynn Polk’s inability to hang on to the ball, and Hunter Henry being called for his umpteenth false start also didn’t help.
In between that, the disappointing Jaguars came to life. Trevor Lawrence & Co. had one drive in the third quarter that went for 17 plays, taking 11:24 off the clock.
It’s tough for Maye to save the day if he doesn’t touch the ball. It’s hard to reverse the team’s fate – the Patriots are now 1-6- if everything else is conspiring against him.
The Patriots defense getting beaten by the same inside zone run play, over and over, was embarrassing. So was the 97-yard punt return by Jacksonville’s Parker Washington in the second quarter.
And if the team wasn’t humiliated enough during the game, Jerod Mayo piled on in the aftermath telling both his players, as well as the media, what he thought of the group.
“We’re a soft football team across the board,” Mayo said following the loss. “We talk about what makes a tough football team: That’s being able to run the ball, that’s being able to stop the run, and that’s being able to cover kicks. We did none of those today.”
Using the word “soft” is one of the worst insults for a football team. But the description certainly fit. And none of the players fought back against the label.
“He said it well. We’ve gotta look in the mirror and understand what he’s saying,” linebacker Jahlani Tavai said. “And if we’re OK with being soft, then some people will fall off and the rest of us who want to prove that wrong will step up and make sure that doesn’t happen.”
For the second straight week, Maye was the team’s leading rusher. That in itself doesn’t bode well.
Maye and Rhamondre Stevenson both had 18 yards. Last week, Maye’s 38 yards topped the group. Meanwhile, the defense has surrendered 192, 193, and 171 yards in consecutive weeks.
At the line of scrimmage, in the trenches, it’s been no contest.
So Maye having a good second start, (26-for-37, 276 yards) is meaningless in the win column. He’s thrown five touchdown passes in his first two games, and has nothing but bruises and losses to show for it.
“I’m here to help this football team win, and we’re not getting that done, so (we) gotta do something different,” Maye said, later adding: “What we’re doing is just not good enough.”
Maye says he can be better. And he can. There are still rookie mistakes in his game. But he’s not the problem. Can’t point a finger at quarterback play for the Patriots demise.
It’s everything else in between – with no end in sight.
