Maye's scramble a sign of what might be. His turnovers showed stardom is still a way off

Published Nov. 4, 2024 6:57 p.m. ET

Associated Press

It could have gone down in New England Patriots history as The Scramble – the 12-second, back-and-forth fire drill that propelled Drake Maye to stardom.

Instead, it turned out to be just another sign of what might be, eventually, some time perhaps in the future, when Maye has — maybe — developed into a franchise quarterback and the Patriots (2-7) have built a team around him.

“Drake is just phenomenal. He keeps showing it week in, week out,” wide receiver Kendrick Bourne said after Maye helped New England send Sunday’s game into overtime, only to throw a game-ending interception to seal Tennessee’s 20-17 victory.

“We’ve got to keep being behind him, help blocking for him, catching the ball, running good routes, so that we can get the full potential out of him,” Bourne said. “When you’ve got somebody like that, it encourages you to go harder. And that’s what we want as a unit, for everybody to give their best foot because clearly, he is.”

The No. 3 overall pick in this year’s draft, Maye waited five games behind Jacoby Brissett before he got the No. 1 QB job, then lost his first two starts before leaving his third with a concussion; Brissett came in and engineered a victory over the New York Jets, snapping a six-game losing streak.

Maye was able to clear the concussion protocol and face the Titans on Sunday, a mixed performance that was forgotten when he delivered from the Tennessee 5-yard line with four seconds left and New England trailing 17-10.

Maye took the shotgun snap and faded back, stepped to his right, drifted left, ran right, scampered up, shuffled to the left and then moved back to his right and — as he was being tackled — lofted the ball toward the end zone, where Rhamondre Stevenson caught it with no time left on the clock.

But Maye also was picked off in overtime, sending the Patriots to their seventh loss in eight weeks.

“Thought I found a way at the end of the fourth and just came up short,” said the rookie out of North Carolina, who completed 29 of 41 passes — both career highs — for 209 yards. “Credit to the guys up front. Those five up front were blocking their butts off for 12 seconds. That’s impressive.”

What’s working

Maye's ground game. The rookie ran eight times for 95 yards — doubling his previous personal best. It was the third-most for a QB in team history and the most since Steve Grogan ran for 103 yards in 1975. Five of his runs were for more than 10 yards, and six went for first downs. In the third quarter, he ran for 5 yards on third-and-5 on a play that was called back for holding. On the replay, he ran for 22 yards to pick up the first down, anyway.

What needs help

The rest of the running game. Other than the quarterback, the Patriots totaled 15 yards on 12 carries. They tried to switch things up with screen passes, but those weren’t working, either.

“You never really want your quarterback to be your leading rusher,” said coach Jerod Mayo, who has used eight different offensive line combinations in nine games. “It starts up front.”

Stock up

Cornerback Marcus Jones continues to have an impact on special teams. A week after breaking free for a 62-yard punt return against the Jets, Jones ran a punt back 44 yards in the second quarter.

Stock down

Ball protection. Jones' return didn't result in points, as Maye threw the first of his two interceptions three plays later. Maye also had a fumble, but the most devastating of his turnovers was the interception he threw in overtime, on a 48-yard heave into coverage on a first down near midfield when the Patriots needed just a field goal to tie or a touchdown to win.

“Just a dumb decision,” he said. “Something you’d like to have back and especially in that situation where we could go at least tie it up. We’re on our own 40, and sometimes the best play is to throw it away. That was a bad decision on my part.”

Injuries

S Marte Mapu hurt his neck early but returned late in the second quarter. DE Deatrich Wise Jr., who had a sack in the first half, was hurt late in the third. DT Jaquelin Roy walked off after going down with 4:40 left.