Getting Drake Maye on track is at the top of the to-do list for the New England Patriots after their drab 20-13 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1, but it will take a “necessary risk” to improve the would-be franchise quarterback’s production.
That’s according to Patriots.com Staff Writer Evan Lazar, who acknowledged that while head coach Mike Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels “probably don’t want to run him too often, using Maye’s rushing ability to their advantage on designed runs or options plays is a necessary risk.”
Lazar made the point as part of a breakdown of what went wrong for the Patriots’ running game in the opening week. Struggles on the ground equated to just 60 yards on 18 carries and made New England’s offense fatally one-sided, leaving Maye exposed.
Drake Maye Change Needed to Fix One-Dimensional Offense
Having Maye throw 53 times a game isn’t how this Patriots team makes an entry in the win column. Especially not when the pass-heavy approach played right into the hands of the Raiders, who relied on “soft cover-three and two-deep zones” under new head coach Peter Carroll.
There were many reasons why the Patriots couldn’t establish their ground game, but not leaning into Maye’s rushing talents often enough, was one of the biggest. Particularly when, as Lazar pointed out, “New England’s best runs were when Maye’s legs were a factor.”
Lazar also included a clip of one such instance when “McDaniels called a nice power-read shovel design, a speed-option, and an RPO-zone read that produced successful runs.”
Successful option-based rushing concepts like this are how the offense is supposed to work with Maye this season. McDaniels is supposed to be planning new things around what Maye can do as a ball-carrier, but those schematic wrinkles showed up all too seldom against the Silver and Black.
So did two other key factors that didn’t help the running game, nor Maye.
Disguise and Protection Lacking for Patriots
McDaniels didn’t do enough to disguise his rushing plays, whether it was Maye’s number called, or those of running backs Rhamondre Stevenson and rookie TreVeyon Henderson. The problem was a lack of motion, according to Lazar.
He detailed how “in Week 1, the Pats ranked 30th in motion rate on designed run plays (50%), motioning at the snap just six times. For comparison, the league-average motion rate was 68.5% in the NFL’s opening week, while the Rams motioned on a league-high 95.7% of their run plays.”
Not using motion meant the Patriots missed out on “bumping defenders out of gaps at the point of attack, creating advantageous blocking angles, opening space into the sidelines, and making for easier play-sequencing off play-action.”
A more creative approach is needed, but so is superior blocking in the trenches. The Patriots won’t get far on the deck if experienced offensive linemen like center Garrett Bradbury and right guard Mike Onwenu can’t win their matchups.
Lazar noted “Bradbury had his ups and downs in the run game,” while Onwenu “didn’t hold his block on a third-and-1 stuff, and couldn’t generate movement on a pull near the goal-line on a run play that had a chance to score.”
Not being able to win along the interior will wreck the hat-on-hat, power-style blocking schemes McDaniels has traditionally called. Other breakdowns from a line that struggled with new bookend tackles, first-round pick Will Campbell and veteran Morgan Moses, will also stunt Maye’s development as a passer.
Highlights from Taylor Kyles of Patriots on CLNS showed Maye being subjected to hits thanks to failures on both sides of the line, with rookie left guard Jared Wilson one of the culprits.
In all, Maye was sacked four times, while his O-line gave up 17 pressures, split in the following way, per Lazar: “Wilson (5), Moses (5), Campbell (sack, 4), Onwenu (3).”
The Patriots have the right to expect more from the third-overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, but Maye won’t take the next step without help. He needs stronger protection and better work from Vrabel and his staff, in terms of balanced play-calling and nuanced designs, to take advantage of natural dual-threat talents.
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