The New England Patriots finished their second preseason game of the year against the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday, with the team showing some good qualities throughout the competition.
One of the biggest bright spots for the Patriots against the Eagles was the performance of their rookie quarterback Drake Maye. After being limited to just six snaps in New England’s season debut against the Carolina Panthers, the third overall pick played two quarters against Philadelphia and made the most of it.
Maye finished the game with a solid night, racking up 47 passing yards while completing six of his 11 attempts and also scoring his first NFL touchdown during a red zone run in the second quarter. The game may not have ended the way New England hoped, but there is a lot of optimism to take away from this game.
After the Patriots’ 13-14 win in Foxboro on Thursday, Maye spoke about his experience during New England’s second preseason game and said it was a solid performance from him and the team, but there are still a few operational issues to be resolved in the future:
“It was fun to go out there. I’m glad the weather held out. Other than that, I thought the guys did a good job. I thought they fought hard. There were the little things: I got the snap, we had a false start – things we’ve preached over and over again. Operationally, we need to clean up because it cost us the game.”
– Drake Maye after defeat against Eagles
The Patriots didn’t perform perfectly, as there were a lot of miscommunications and missteps on the offensive line and some of the connections between quarterback and receiver weren’t working, but you can’t begrudge New England what they got out of their third pick in April.
Javon Baker will make this catch more often than not this year pic.twitter.com/DdH0tD1P17
— Football Digest (@FoootballDigest) 16 August 2024
Maye went on to discuss how his confidence has developed during his first few appearances in the league, explaining that this trait grows every time he steps on the field:
“I think every time you go out there you get more confident. First of all, it’s always the nerves the first time you go out and start running. But other than that, more reps just help me. At the end of the day, I’m just happy that I can go out there, get some reps in and do the best I can.”
– Drake Maye on his self-confidence
Maye and the Patriots will have one last chance to make a splash in the preseason against the Washington Commanders on Sunday, August 25. We’ll likely see a few more flashes of New England’s prized rookie quarterback.
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