Drake Maye and the skidding Patriots could find a favorable matchup overseas against the Jaguars

Published Oct. 17, 2024 6:11 p.m. ET

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Drake Maye should have a more favorable matchup in his second NFL start. Just ask fellow rookie quarterback Caleb Williams.

Maye and the skidding New England Patriots will travel across the pond to play the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday. And no one needs to point out Jacksonville’s defensive flaws to Maye. They were on full display last week when Williams threw four touchdown passes in Chicago's 35-16 romp over the Jaguars in London.

Inconsistent pass rush. Blown assignments. Gap integrity issues. The Jaguars (1-5) put them all on tape.

Even former Patriots coach and current analyst Bill Belichick took aim at the Jags while weighing in on Williams’ performance, saying “that was a good defense to face.”

It might be good for Maye, too.

The third overall pick from North Carolina had moments in his starting debut against Houston, including three touchdown passes, but he also had three turnovers as the Patriots (1-5) lost their fifth straight since stunning Cincinnati in Week 1.

“As the weeks go on, I think I’ll get more and more confident, especially with the game plan stuff,” Maye said.

Maye threw two interceptions in the 41-21 loss. He also gave the ball away on a strip sack that left Houston on the Patriots 10, setting up a third-quarter touchdown. His fourth-quarter INT also gave Houston the ball deep in New England territory and set up another score.

“We hurt our defense, put them in some bad spots,” Maye said.

As troubling as ball security was for first-year Pats coach Jerod Mayo, the slow start was more alarming. The Texans were up 14-0 after two drives and it would have been worse had they not missed a field goal.

“We’ve got to start games faster, and that’s definitely a point of emphasis this week,” Mayo said.

The Jaguars spent the week in London licking their wounds. Little has gone right for Jacksonville this season and getting swept overseas would put a bright spotlight on coach Doug Pederson’s job security, especially after safety Andre Cisco said he saw “a lot of quit” against the Bears and quarterback Trevor Lawrence called the team fragile.

Pederson responded by saying his guys need to eliminate mental mistakes, be physically tougher and more well-conditioned.

“Being a smarter football team really makes a difference in the success that you have on the field,” Pederson said.

An opportunity for some younger Jags

The Jaguars are making room for two rookies on their defensive line. They traded veteran Roy Robertson-Harris to Seattle on Monday in exchange for a sixth-round draft pick in 2026.

The move creates more snaps for two newcomers from LSU: second-round draft pick Maason Smith and fourth-rounder Jordan Jefferson, who made his NFL debut last week.

“More opportunities to go make plays,” defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen said. “We appreciate everything that Roy did, but next-guy-up mentality. We’ve got a deep room there. We’ve kept a lot of guys, so we feel like we’re really good at that position.”

Too many flags

Mayo said there will be changes coming to hold players accountable for the slew of penalties the team has committed.

The Patriots have 48 penalties this season, 10th most in the NFL. They had nine penalties against the Texans on Sunday, including one on linebacker Sione Takitaki for an illegal formation on the opening kickoff.

“The common denominator is just a lack of focus,” Mayo said. “We’re in the middle of the season now, and to have a penalty on the first play of the game is just unacceptable.”

Mayo said playing time will be affected, calling it a wake-up call.

“We want our most dependable players out there that we can really count on,” he said. “If you’re going to have pre-snap, post-snap penalties — we can’t live that way.”

Campbell returning

Jacksonville’s defense should get a boost from the return of cornerback Tyson Campbell, who missed the last five games with a hamstring injury. Campbell signed a four-year, $76.5 million contract extension days before training camp and played well in the season opener.

But the Jaguars have struggled since he went down, falling to last in the league in passing defense.

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AP Sports Writer Jimmy Golen contributed from Boston.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

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NFL - New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars - 10/20/2024