FOXBORO – Drake Maye is healthy enough to play and is scheduled to play Thursday night against the Panthers, head coach Jerod Mayo said Tuesday.
How much? And with whom? That remains to be seen. But the answers to these questions could be the most exciting coaching decisions of the evening for Mayo and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt.
Projected starter Jacoby Brissett doesn’t look like a player who needs an excessive amount of preseason practice to get ready for Week 1. He has experience. He has experience in this scheme. And he performed well in training camp. He’s a known quantity.
Maye could use a little more spice, but he is also the future face of the New England franchise and there are significant doubts about how the offensive line will perform in front of him on Thursday.
Of course, even though the preseason opener is the first of three meaningless matchups, the threat of physical contact is real. And the last few days of practices in Foxboro wearing protective gear have revealed a line that has been shaky at times in its ability to protect passes.
It’s not about a game plan. It’s not about how he uses his timeouts. It’s about how Mayo assesses his team’s ability to protect its most valuable asset. And that could end up being the most important decision he makes Thursday.
If the answer is “not good enough,” it could be a long night of work for Bailey Zappe and Joe Milton.
Let’s get to the Drake Maye report for Day 11…
The Rep report
As usual, Brissett and Maye shared the vast majority of reps. Brissett played 29 games on Tuesday. Maye played 20.
Brissett remains at the top of the pecking order and Mayo told reporters that the plan is to have the veteran start against Carolina.
Utilizing the numbers
After a tough blocking workout for Maye on Monday, it wasn’t the second unit offense that allowed the Patriots defense to get sacks. It was seemingly the first unit blocking for Brissett that faltered more often.
Brissett completed 13 of 20 passes with four sacks during the competitive phases of Day 11. Maye, on the other hand, completed 8 of 14 passes with one interception and one fumbled snap.
Brissett’s sacks came from Anfernee Jennings, Kyle Dugger, Jaylinn Hawkins and Jabrill Peppers during a practice that focused on adding extra runners on defense.
Although the offensive line has seen some recent reshuffling due to injuries, the team’s best lineman, Mike Onwenu, was on the field for all four games, suggesting this is the foundation of the top group with one or two changes. Michael Jordan replaced left guard Sidy Sow on three of the sacks, and Nick Leverett replaced David Andrews on one. Vederian Lowe and Calvin Anderson joined Brissett as the top tackles, as Chukwuma Okorafor missed his third straight practice.
There were no sacks for Maye in that game, in part because he was crucial in getting the ball out for most of the practice. A muddy pocket — but a pocket nonetheless — may have contributed to his late interception, which was caught by fellow rookie Marcellas Dial after it was deflected high into the air by safety AJ Thomas and receiver Javon Baker.
The botched snap could be attributed in part to Maye, who is relatively new to getting under center after his college career in the shotgun. But immediately after the botched exchange, center/guard Atonio Mafi was taken out of the game and Leverett was brought in.
Why he is ready
In this section of the Drake Maye Report, we will highlight the aspects of the rookie’s performance that suggest he will rise to the top of New England’s quarterback hierarchy sooner rather than later.
Maye completed eight of his first nine attempts in the contest and looked like a confident passer as he threw the ball quickly and accurately, with highlights including consecutive fades into the end zone to sophomore wide receiver Kayshon Boutte and rookie tight end Jaheim Bell. He beat tight coverage from Alex Austin on the first attempt and tight coverage from Kyle Dugger on the second.
Later in practice, he was in “I can’t go for broke and take a win” mode, taking advantage of the defense’s off-coverage and hitting KJ Osborn (once) and Jalen Reagor (three times) on four consecutive shots.
It was a professional, calm performance from the young quarterback, which showed that he is able to recognize quick answers at the line of scrimmage and deliver them with precision.
Why patience is a virtue
In this section of the Drake Maye Report, we will highlight the aspects of the rookie’s performance that suggest he is not quite ready to be at the top of the quarterback rankings.
It was the end of practice – a five-play sequence – where it seemed as if Maye and the secondary offensive line were still in the development phase.
He stepped into the pocket and threw a pass to a tightly covered Baker that resulted in a pick. After a Baker drop on the next play, Maye’s third throw was intercepted by Azizi Hearn, who deflected through JuJu Smith-Schuster. Then came the fumbled snap and another pass breakup, this time from Dell Pettus to Mitchell Wilcox.
Not all of these negative results can be blamed solely on Maye, but in terms of results, it was a rocky end to training after a largely encouraging day.
If anything, that stretch – when viewed alongside the rest of the afternoon’s encouraging work – was merely a microcosm of what to expect from Maye throughout his rookie camp: non-linear progress.
