In the wake of Sunday’s massively disappointing 20-13 Week 1 loss to the Raiders at home, probably the first and most pertinent question that has arisen around the Patriots has been the relative readiness of quarterback Drake Maye. Which has led, in turn, to another pair of questions, both of which relate to offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
The first is whether, in the short-term, McDaniels is giving Maye too much to work through with his complex and read-heavy offense.
The second is whether McDaniels and Maye can mesh and make things work at all in the long-term.
Maye’s numbers were not terrible: 30-for-46 passing, 287 yards with a touchdown and an interception. But there were times during the game when he appeared somewhat lost in the pocket, and unsure about what he should be calling at the line. So while there was some positive that can be gleaned from the loss, there is a lot more negative.
Josh McDaniels on Putting Too Much on Drake Maye
On the first point, McDaniels was blunt.
“No. No,” he said. “We haven’t given him anymore than what we’ve given him all year, which is not too much.”
If anything, the way Maye reacted during Sunday’s game raised the question of whether he should have played more in the Patriots’ three preseason games. He played only two games and was just 7-for-12 passing. Sunday was, effectively, Maye’s first go-round in McDaniels’ system, the fourth offense he has learned in four years.
“I think, we have to understand it’s his first game in our system. I think we have all learned a lot from each experience we have had. Every practice, Washington, the joint practice, Minnesota, preseason games. The little we were able to work together, obviously,” McDaniels said. “Then the first full game that we have the opportunity to go through our operation and see things for the first time and follow our rules. Thought he made a lot of good plays, a lot of good decisions.”
Drake Maye Remains Inexperienced
One point that has been floating around New England in recent days has been just how inexperienced Maye is. He just turned 23, but more than that, he came into the NFL decidedly lacking in experience at the college level.
Of the five quarterbacks who were drafted around Maye early in the first round in 2024 , he is by far the youngest and least experienced. Bo Nix played 61 college games and is already 25. Michael Penix played 48 college games and is also 25. Jayden Daniels will be 25 in December and played 55 college games.
JJ McCarthy (40) and Caleb Williams (37) also played more college games than Maye, who only had 30 to his credit.
Patriots Stuck Waiting on Maye
The Patriots are stuck then, between waiting on Drake Maye and having spent $350 million in free-agent commitments so that they can win now.
Said McDaniels: “It’s gotta be a long-term vision of where this guy is gonna be. He is gonna be a really good player. It’s just there are things that are going to happen in every game, especially at that position, that aren’t going to be perfect. It’s hard to play a perfect game at that spot, let alone any spot. No, I think Drake does an incredible job of preparing.
Again, Maye is only 23.
“I would say the biggest thing for me is just, he’s a young quarterback, you know?” McDaniels said. “He’s a young quarterback … He’s the right guy. And so we’re gonna have the opportunity to continue to grow and improve and get better.”
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