The urge to abandon the Drake Maye plan has to be growing stronger.
The Patriots are 1-3 and for three straight weeks, have tumbled further down the hill. They own the worst-ranked offense in the league, and the worst passing attack.
Jacoby Brissett hasn’t been terrible, but hasn’t been able to lift the team with his play.
With a leaky offensive line, he hasn’t had the time to do much. He’s been knocked around like a rag doll. But he also hasn’t seen the field very well in recent games, missing open receivers.
Naturally, fans want to see Maye. The rookie quarterback is the shiny new toy. He’s the magic bullet, the lone source of hope for a team struggling to get up off the mat.
Fans love the backup quarterback when things aren’t going well. Even more so in New England where the backup happens to be the third overall pick in the 2024 draft.
To this point, the Patriots have resisted the temptation to start Maye. They’ve kept to their plan, whatever that might be.
Beyond Brissett suffering an injury, or the veteran becoming a turnover machine, what, if anything, might prompt the Patriots to make the switch?
What if the players, specifically those on offense, thought they had a better chance with Maye, than Brissett?
What if the rumblings came from the locker room, and the players asked for the switch?
While quarterback coach T.C. McCartney isn’t the final decision maker, he does offer input to Jerod Mayo, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, and senior offensive assistant Ben McAdoo.
Following his media availability Friday, McCartney answered the question.
Specifically, what if the players pressured the coaches to play Maye? How would they respond?
“I’ve never personally felt that pressure to play him,” McCartney said, suggesting that scenario hasn’t played out to this point. “I think the pressure we feel is to score enough points to win the game. But I think the important part is to always do what’s best for the team. That’s where our decisions operate. That’s where they come from.
“Everyone can have their opinions on what that means, and what that looks like, but we’re going to stick to what we think is best.”
For now, that means keeping Maye on the sidelines.
Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins, who are also 1-3, projects as a winnable game. The Patriots are favored. Lose, and the Maye talk will intensify.
It’s been a mixed bag how well the quarterbacks taken in the first round of the 2024 draft have fared thus far.
First overall pick Caleb Williams has struggled, but showed some signs of growth in the Chicago Bears’ Week 4 win over the Los Angeles Rams. Overall, he’s completed 61.7% of his passes. He’s thrown three touchdowns, with four picks. He’s also been sacked 16 times, second-most in the league.
Jayden Daniels, who was taken second by the Washington Commanders, has been a star from jump. He’s completed 82.1 % of his passes, tops in the NFL. He’s thrown three TD passes, with one pick for the 3-1 Commanders. As for Denver’s Bo Nix, the 12th overall pick, he’s completed 60.1% of his passes, throwing just one TD pass, with four picks.
The Patriots have held firm to their plan with Maye. They don’t want to throw him out there as the starter until they feel he’s ready, or, the offense is ready for him. Is that time nearing? Can they adjust the plan on the fly? McCartney’s answer seemed to open the door to the possibility.
“You need to, when you’re not winning, keep on looking for answers,” McCartney said. “There’s always this reason and that reason. We just want to get better every day. That’s the bottom line.”
Like many other Patriots coaches, McCartney sounded upbeat about Maye’s progress. While Maye has yet to start, the quarterback coach said he was comfortable if the rookie had to take over in an emergency.
Maye did make a cameo in the Thursday night loss to the New York Jets two weeks ago. McCartney thought it was a worthwhile stint to “get his feet wet.”
Beyond that, McCartney said the coaching staff’s plan for Maye was right on schedule.
“Drake’s definitely been developing. There’s a lot that goes into preparation during the season, that’s different than the offseason. Him experiencing that through the first quarter of the season has been really good,” McCartney said. “He’s super smart, he soaks up all the information, all the experiences. And, it’s going well. He’s where we thought he’d be.”
Just not where many Patriots fans want him to be.
