Jerod Mayo has been taking a bit of a victory lap regarding the performance of the offensive line in Sunday’s win over Cincinnati.
He’s made a point of saying the “deficiencies” pointed out by the media in the leadup to the season opener were “overblown.”
Which begs the question: If the offensive line isn’t as bad as many had described, why isn’t Drake Maye playing?
Answer: Because the offensive line was, is, and continues to be a problem.
Mayo’s take on the offensive line wasn’t necessarily wrong. Whether the problems were overblown or exaggerated doesn’t necessarily mean deficiencies don’t exist.
They do.
While the line was effective run blocking, and getting push up front, the same can’t be said for the pass blocking.
The line allowed pressure on nearly 50% of Jacoby Brissett’s drop-backs against the Bengals. The Patriots quarterback also got hit on 25% of the pass plays.
And this came with the Bengals only rushing four, while blitzing just four times. No matter which way you slice it, those are troubling numbers. That kind of pass protection is not a recipe for a rookie quarterback to succeed.
Left tackle continues to be a problem. Starter Chuks Okorafor started but didn’t last long as he was yanked in the first quarter in favor of Vederian Lowe, who was dealing with an oblique injury, but battled in spite of it. That duo was responsible for seven pressures.
Rookie Layden Robinson, who started at right guard next to Michael Onwenu, made his presence felt moving bodies to help spring Rhamondre Stevenson (25 carries, 120 yards, 1 TD), but he had some issues holding off the rush, allowing three quarterback hits.
Brissett handled the Bengals pressure about as well as any quarterback could. He was effective in deciding when to take off, avoiding drive-killing sacks. He made key first downs with several of his runs.
He also stood in and absorbed hits to make plays, hitting receivers throughout.
After the game, center David Andrews spoke about what Brissett brought to the table in the 16-10 win and how important it was in the scheme of things.
“I thought he showed great toughness, and to have a tough football team, it doesn’t just come up front, it has to come from every position including the quarterback, doing some things like that, some dirty work, taking those hits, keeping going, just being steady,” Andrews said, “that’s how they show toughness and Jacoby was that for us today and did a great job.”
There’s something to be said for the steadiness of a veteran. While Maye came on strong toward the end of training camp, and flashed in the final two preseason games, Mayo chose Brissett to be the starter.
While that seemed pre-determined all along, it was still the right call.
Maye, who turned 22 last month, will be better for sitting and watching for awhile. He’ll benefit in the long run by watching the process, and seeing how Brissett handles adversity. And, he won’t suffer from the aftershocks of seeing free rushers coming at him in his sleep.
It’s only one week, but the rookie QB class as a whole – those who played – didn’t exactly wow in their debuts.
Denver’s Bo Nix, taken 12th overall, may have had a terrific preseason largely playing against vanilla defenses, but when the lights came on Sunday, he seemed pretty rattled by game’s end.
He completed 26-of-42 passes for 138 yards. He threw two interceptions. The Broncos offensive line didn’t help, as Nix was sacked twice in the Broncos 26-20 loss to the Seahawks, who will be in Foxborough Sunday.
First overall pick Caleb Williams didn’t look so hot, either. He was 14-of-29 with 93 passing yards in the Bears win over the Titans.
Jayden Daniels, taken by the Commanders with the second pick, did the best of all the rookies. He went 17-of-24, with 184 passing yards. He had two rushing touchdowns in a losing effort.
If the Patriots keep winning with Brissett, there’s no need to rush Maye, especially if the line is still working out issues. Brissett also wasn’t helped by a collection of receivers who didn’t exactly separate from coverage.
Given how well Brissett managed the game under those circumstances, he remains the Patriots best option at this stage.
