Has Maye Ended the Patriots' Difficult Brady Hangover?
It's hard not to sympathize with the Cleveland Browns, Jets, and Chicago Bears. These teams have spent decades in QB uncertainty, cycling between young players and temporary starters. Meanwhile, after only half a decade of searching, the Patriots – the after-Brady Patriots – seem to have discovered their man.
Half a decade. From Brady to Cam Newton to Mac Jones to Bailey Zappe to Maye’s first choppy season to this: a young quarterback who appears to be a elite player and Most Valuable Player contender.
His breakout performance came last week: a road win in Orchard Park, where Maye went throw-for-throw with the Bills' star and surpassed the current MVP in the fourth quarter. But the Saints game on Sunday may have been more remarkable. Fresh off an surprise victory over the division leaders, a visit to a lousy Saints team had potential for a letdown. And the Saints teased an upset. They executed a big play on the opening snap of the game, before stalling out in the red zone and opting for a field goal. It took Maye all of four plays to respond, launching a long pass to DeMario Douglas for the leading score.
Drake Maye goes 53 yards deep to Pop Douglas!
It was Maye in peak form, climbing through the protection to deliver a strike deep. After that, he didn’t let up: Maye dominated the Saints in every area of the playing surface. His opening two quarters was so searing that his alma mater was forced to tweet. He finished 18 completions on 26 attempts for over 250 yards with three touchdowns and zero giveaways. And it might have been better if not for a trio of debatable referee decisions.
It was his fifth consecutive outing with at least 200 yards and a passer rating above 100. Only Patrick Mahomes, the Cowboys' QB, and the Hall of Famer have achieved that at 23 years old or less.
The best quarterbacks convert tough away matches into routine victories. They avoid risky throws, keep the offense chugging and make the decisive throws on crucial downs. The Patriots required all of Maye’s near perfection to squeeze by the Saints. They couldn’t run the ball against a strong defensive line. Their defense allowed multiple big gains. This was a game that had to be won by Maye's passing. And he delivered under fire.
Maye took hits a few times and tackled once, but the pressure he faced was continuous. It didn’t matter. Maye passed all three touchdown passes while pressured, with all three going over 20 yards in the air.
It's beyond statistics. It’s Maye's demeanor. He’s confident and composed in the pocket, bouncing through reads to locate receivers. When needed, he can take off and improvise on the ground. As a first-year player, he was a somewhat erratic, fleeing the pocket at the initial hint of danger. But now, he’s been reminiscent of Brady, conforming to the structure of the scheme and getting the ball to the right spot in a hurry.
This year, Maye is up to 10 TD passes, two running scores and only two picks. He’s halved his Turnover Worthy Play rate from his debut season, when he was constantly trying to conjure magic out of failed schemes. Now, he’s choosing wisely. He hasn’t committed a TWP in three games.
After college, Maye was touted as a strong-armed passer. Evaluators questioned his ability to process sophisticated coverages and operate a detailed system. Overly casual. Overly risky. But the offensive coordinator, in his third tour as New England's OC, has unlocked the entire range of his scheme. Maye isn’t being limited; he’s being relied on. The Patriots are evolving each week again, and Maye is leading the offense like an experienced veteran.
His development has sped up the Patriots' schedule. If there were to be sophomore improvement, you expected it would be a gradual process. There would still be the highlight throws, while Maye used the year trying to cut his mental errors in half. That would be progress. In contrast, Maye has exceeded predictions. Six games into his second season, he’s become one of the league’s best – and he’s transformed the Patriots into division contenders once more.
Bears fans will find solace in seeing the progress of their rookie QB. But if you’re a Cleveland or New York follower, you have to wince. Because this is the ideal scenario when a franchise quarterback emerges. And for the other NFL quarterback-starved franchises, it’s yet another reminder of how harsh and repetitive this game can be. The Patriots went from the greatest of all time to a potential star in five years. Some teams spend a 25 years looking – and never locate anyone.
Securing a franchise quarterback is about beyond victories. It changes the identity of a fanbase and franchise. For two decades, the Pats lived the privileged existence. But the recent years have been about failing to build a transition from Brady to the next era. They’ve discovered the solution today. Get ready for your Masshole friends to regain their Brady-era bluster.
MVP of the Week
JSN, wide receiver, Seattle. Against a tough Jacksonville D, Seattle’s only way forward was for Sam Darnold to target Smith-Njigba, constantly. The wideout answered with eight catches for over 150 yards and a touchdown on 13 attempts, as the Seahawks edged the Jaguars 20-12. The Seahawks' D led the way, hounding Trevor Lawrence and dropping him a season-high seven sacks. But it was Smith-Njigba who carried the Seahawks’ offense, making up all the first 117 of the team's early yards via passing. That featured a long TD and maybe the nastiest route we’ll see from a receiver all year.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba just beat new Jaguars CB Greg Newsome on his first play with his new team – a 61-yard touchdown.
Video of the Week
The Miami Dolphins were on the wrong side of another frustrating, late defeat. They took a one-point lead over the Los Angeles Chargers with 48 seconds left, after their QB found Darren Waller for his fourth score of the season. The Chargers returned a 40-yard return on the following kick. From there, Justin Herbert and Ladd McConkey took over.
WILD PLAY BY HERBERT AND MCCONKEY.
Hoo boy. That is brutal. Somehow, Herbert escaped two defenders, slipping past the initial before tossing the other to the ground. He located his target in the short area, who faked out a defender to advance in range for the game-winning field goal.
It exemplifies the Chargers' year: squeaking by on the brilliance of their QB and his surrounding playmakers as his offensive line flails. And it reflects the Miami's D, too: a pass-rush that can't complete sacks and a floundering secondary. With the defeat, the Dolphins dropped to one win and five losses. Painful late-game failures have become common for Mike McDaniel’s team. With another rough loss, he’s running out of time to keep his position.
Stat of the Week
Negative 10. That’s the net passing yards the Jets' QB ended with in the Jets’ close defeat to the Broncos in London. It’s the lowest in any game since the Chargers had negative 19 in 1998. Back then, the Chargers had a rookie making his third game. Fields was making his 49th start.
It's clear who Fields is now: an elite rusher who struggles to decipher the {passing game|pass
