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Mike Reiss, editor at ESPN
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Quick thoughts and notes on the New England Patriots and the NFL:
1. Slow play with Maye: When the Houston Texans visited the Patriots for the 2023 season opener, Texans coach DeMeco Ryans had a plan for then-rookie quarterback CJ Stroud. He would play very little.
Ryans later explained that the goal was to give Stroud a little taste of “live replays” and “real looks,” while also acknowledging some concerns about the offensive line, as the Texans had “things to clean up” in that area. So Stroud played 12 snaps in two series in his NFL debut, including an interception of Jalen Mills, with Ryans adamant that less is more despite Stroud lobbying to stay in the game.
Given the events of Thursday night’s Patriots 17-3 win over the Carolina Panthers in their first preseason game, it’s time to rethink that approach.
Drake Maye, the No. 3 overall pick who brings the same promise to New England that Stroud brings to the resurgent Texans, played just seven snaps in one series. The ultra-conservative approach has led some to question whether new head coach Jerod Mayo and his staff missed an opportunity to encourage Maye’s development, especially since it seems clear they don’t plan to have him play at the start of the regular season.
They may have done that. It’s also possible they encouraged Maye’s development, as evidenced by the Texans’ approach last year, when Stroud — who hadn’t been named a starter at the start of the preseason — ended up being named Offensive Rookie of the Year by the Associated Press.
There is no one-size-fits-all playbook for approaching season openers with highly drafted rookie quarterbacks, as evidenced by the variance in playing time among recent top picks.
The best rookie QBs (since 2021) and how many snaps they played in the season opener:
(Caleb Williams’ Week 2 game will be counted because the Bears have another preseason game after the first HoF game; also, penalties will be counted as snaps played for the 2024 quarterbacks, Bo Nix will be added on Sunday) pic.twitter.com/TiM4yQ9i6c
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) 10 August 2024
Some coaches, like Bill Belichick and former Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, believe in letting rookie quarterbacks play more often, which is why then-rookie Mac Jones totaled 33 snaps in his debut in the 2021 season opener, setting the stage for him to eventually surpass starter Cam Newton and put together a productive rookie season that left some wondering if he should have been drafted as the No. 15 pick.
“Practice is practice, but things happen at game speed and that’s something everyone has to improve on — especially at the quarterback position,” Belichick said, explaining Jones’ high playing time in his preseason debut. “This is a good opportunity for us to get that pace.”
You’d think Mayo would embrace a similar philosophy, considering he played under Belichick for eight seasons and then coached his team for five. Instead, he’s bucking that and relying heavily on the team he hired — led by coordinator Alex Van Pelt, quarterbacks coach TC McCartney and senior assistant Ben McAdoo — to set the plan for Maye and Co.
“Each of these quarterbacks has an individual development plan that I have gone through with AVP and the rest of his team, and we will stick to that plan until it is time for a change,” Mayo said.
One of the main goals the team set for the quarterbacks in the opening game was “clean action and communication,” according to veteran starter Jacoby Brissett. That’s even more important to Maye, who didn’t call plays in the huddle at North Carolina. Mayo also acknowledged that the offensive line and some of its notable issues in training camp were also a factor in the limited playing time. The unexpected rainy weather report adds another layer of context to consider.
In his seven snaps Thursday night, Maye dropped the ball three times, passed three times and was assessed a false start penalty against right tackle Chukwuma Okorafor. Maye completed 2 of 3 passes for 19 yards.
The Patriots return to the practice field on Sunday and Monday for their 12th and 13th practices since the start of training camp before welcoming the Eagles to town for a joint practice on Tuesday. The teams then play at Gillette Stadium on Thursday night.
It would be a surprise if Maye was limited to seven snaps in his second game.
“This is a big week for everyone to practice against the Eagles and then we’ll really see how the reps break down in the game,” Mayo said. “I expect Drake to get more reps than he did in the first game against the Eagles.”
2. Everything about OL: With all the talk about the Patriots’ pursuit of receiver Brandon Aiyuk and Maye’s development, you could argue that the state of the offensive line is the team’s biggest problem. On Maye’s lone drive Thursday night, Okorafor was responsible for three breakdowns, left guard Sidy Sow for one, and left tackle Vederian Lowe for another, according to my analysis. That’s partly why Maye got into a third-and-12 and third-and-11 situation. And the depth of the second unit, which was led by a solid performance from rookie right guard Layden Robinson, is also shaky. Until that’s all sorted out, it doesn’t seem like an exaggeration to say that not much else will matter.
3. Judon status: Matthew Judon may be unhappy with the slower contract negotiations that would have earned him a raise, but he didn’t let that show in Thursday’s season opener as he coached fellow outside linebacker Oshane Ximines on the sidelines in front of Mayo.
This led to some of the most notable comments during the team’s telecast, as they came in part from Judon’s former teammate Devin McCourty and his twin brother Jason, who played for 13 NFL seasons.
“Everyone is wondering, ‘Judon is here, but is he really happy?’ I think from a professional athlete’s perspective, you don’t realize that when you’re there every day and you’re with the guys – regardless of the contract situation – once you’re on the field and in the building, you want to be there for your guys.”
McCourty added that Judon was battling a persistent injury and that was the reason he had not participated in the game or in previous training.
4. Brady in the locker room: When might Tom Brady make his first visit to Gillette Stadium as a Fox commentator? With the Patriots currently lacking much national prestige and Brady on Fox’s No. 1 team, there’s no guarantee it will even happen. But if Fox values the excitement it could generate and wants to strike early when a tough season is predicted in New England, perhaps Week 5 against the Dolphins is the best time.
At this point, Fox has only announced Brady’s assignment for Week 1 – Cowboys vs. Browns. According to league sources, the Seahawks vs. Patriots game in Week 2 is not currently on his schedule.
5. “Bigger than me”: Third-year safety/special teamer Brenden Schooler said he went up to Mayo toward the end of Thursday’s preseason win to congratulate him because it was his first win as coach. He said Mayo told him, “It’s not about me, it’s about us.” Schooler continued the story when asked what he thought the new sign Mayo put up in the team meeting room — which reads “BIGGER than me” — meant.
6. Harris as RB3? The Patriots know Rhamondre Stevenson will be their top running back, followed by free agent signing Antonio Gibson. After that, it’s a little less certain, but 2023 sixth-round pick Kevin Harris is likely the most likely candidate. The 5-foot-10, 220-pound Harris, who kept his pads low on a 2-yard touchdown run Thursday night, has “done a great job in the weight room and on the field,” according to Mayo.
7. Brady’s last INT: The football Brady threw on his final pass as a Patriot, a pick-6 from his former teammate Logan Ryan in a playoff loss to the Titans at Gillette Stadium, held great significance to Ryan, as he was Brady’s teammate in New England from 2013 to 2016. When the two became teammates again with the Buccaneers in 2022, Ryan placed the ball, along with a few other items, in the spot where Brady asked his teammates to leave things for him to sign.
“Tom enjoyed it and joined in, even though he was kind of tricked into it,” Ryan said.
The two then got to talking and said that if football could lead to something positive at the end, that would be best for both of them. So it is currently being auctioned off with the proceeds going to animal rescue, one of Ryan’s passions off the field and something Brady participated in through his daughter Vivian.
Brady, always a good sportsman, signed his name and wrote on the ball: “Last pass as a Patriot… 04.01.20… Logan Ryan INT.”
8. “Fully open” at Kicker: Mayo declared the contest between incumbent kicker Chad Ryland and six-year starter Joey Slye “wide open,” with Slye getting the OK to attempt the only field goal attempt in the first preseason game Thursday – a successful 42-yard kick. Ryland made both attempts to score again, with the second going wide right as he approached the goal posts. Adding those kicks to what’s been going on in training camp practice puts Ryland at 26-of-29 and Slye at 23-of-28.
9. Kickoff Nugget: Teams around the NFL are analyzing kickoff returns and how they’re coping with the league’s new rules. On Thursday, the Patriots lined up eight blockers on one level, with just one player behind them and two returners in the landing zone. Special teams coaches would be surprised if the Patriots did that regularly, because that kind of 8-1 lineup limits their ability to double-team from different levels, which seems to be one of the keys to the new rule. Perhaps it’s also because the Patriots, who had two returns for 44 yards on Thursday night, didn’t want to show too much.
10. Did you know? The Patriots have two players on the current roster who were teammates in Mayo’s final season in 2015 — center David Andrews and long snapper Joe Cardona. Houston’s Ryans is the only other current NFL head coach who was teammates with two of his players — last season with safety Kareem Jackson and snapper Jon Weeks.
