Did Maye Finished the Patriots' Painful Tom Brady Aftermath?
It's hard not to sympathize with the Browns, Jets, and Bears. These teams have endured years in quarterback purgatory, cycling between prospects and temporary starters. In contrast, after only half a decade of searching, the Patriots – the post-Tom Brady Patriots – appear to have found the guy.
Five years. From Brady through Newton, Jones, Zappe, and Maye's rocky start to now: 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 Buffalo, where Maye went throw-for-throw with Josh Allen and outplayed the current MVP in the fourth quarter. But the Saints game on Sunday may have been even more impressive. Fresh off an upset win over the division favorites, a visit to a lousy Saints team had risk of a slump. And the Saints threatened early. They ripped off a large gain on the opening snap of the game, before stalling out in the redzone and opting for a field goal. It took Maye all of four plays to answer, uncorking a 53-yard pass to DeMario Douglas for the leading touchdown.
Drake Maye goes 53 yards deep to Pop Douglas!
It was Maye at his best, climbing through the pocket to throw a perfect pass deep. From there, he kept pushing: Maye torched the Saints in all parts of the field. His first half was so searing that even North Carolina was compelled to post. He finished 18-of-26 for 261 yards with three touchdowns and no turnovers. And it might have been better if not for a trio of questionable officiating calls.
It was his fifth consecutive outing with at least 200 yards and a passer rating north of 100. Only Patrick Mahomes, the Cowboys' QB, and Dan Marino have ever done that at 23 years old or less.
The best quarterbacks turn difficult road games into ho-hum wins. They avoid risky throws, maintain offensive momentum and make the decisive throws on crucial downs. The Patriots needed every bit of Maye's flawless play to squeeze by the Saints. They struggled on the ground against a strong defensive line. Their defense allowed multiple chunk plays. 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 sacked once, but the defensive pressure was continuous. It made no difference. Maye passed all three touchdown passes while pressured, with all three traveling 20 yards or more in the flight.
It’s not just the numbers. It’s Maye's demeanor. He’s self-assured and calm in the protection, scanning options to locate receivers. When needed, he can take off and improvise on the ground. As a rookie, he was a somewhat erratic, escaping pressure at the first sign of trouble. But this season, he’s been reminiscent of Brady, conforming to the structure of the scheme and delivering the ball where it needs to go quickly.
For the season, Maye has 10 passing touchdowns, two running scores and only two picks. He’s halved his Turnover Worthy Play rate from his rookie year, when he was constantly trying to create plays out of broken plays. Currently, he’s picking his moments. He has avoided a TWP in three outings.
After college, Maye was billed as a big-armed bomber. Evaluators doubted his capacity to read complex defenses and run a complex offense. Too loose. Overly risky. But the offensive coordinator, in his third tour as Patriots offensive coordinator, has unleashed the full breadth of his playbook. Maye isn’t being limited; he’s being trusted. The Patriots are evolving weekly again, and Maye is piloting the offense like an eight-year vet.
His development has accelerated the Patriots' schedule. If there were to be second-year progress, you expected it would be a slow burn. There would still exist the spectacular passes, while Maye spent the year trying to cut his mental errors in half. That would be improvement. Instead, Maye has exceeded predictions. Six games into his second season, he’s turned into one of the league’s best – and he’s made the Patriots into division contenders again.
Bears fans will find solace in seeing the development of their rookie QB. But if you’re a Browns or Jets fan, you have to wince. Because this is the ideal scenario when a franchise QB arrives. And for the rest of the league’s 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 possible great in half a decade. Some teams spend a quarter of a century searching – and still don’t find anyone.
Finding a franchise QB is about more than victories. It alters the identity of a fan base and franchise. For two decades, the Patriots enjoyed the gilded life. But the recent years have been about failing to build a transition from Brady to whatever would come next. They’ve found the answer now. Prepare for your Masshole friends to regain their championship confidence.
Player of the Week
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Seattle Seahawks. Against a stifling Jaguars defense, Seattle's sole option was for their QB to target JSN, constantly. The receiver responded with eight receptions for 162 yards and a touchdown on 13 targets, as the Seahawks snuck past the Jaguars by eight points. Seattle’s defense led the way, hounding the Jaguars' QB and dropping him a year-high seven sacks. But it was Smith-Njigba who carried the Seattle's attack, making up all the first 117 of the team's early yards via passing. That included a 61-yard touchdown and perhaps the best route we’ll see from a pass-catcher all year.
JSN outmaneuvered new Jaguars corner Greg Newsome on his very first snap with his new squad – a 61-yard TD.
Video of the Week
The Dolphins were on the losing end of another disappointing, late defeat. They gained a narrow lead over the Chargers with 48 seconds left, after Tua Tagovailoa found Darren Waller for his fourth touchdown of the year. The Chargers returned a 40-yard return on the following kick. Then, Justin Herbert and his receiver took over.
WILD PLAY BY HERBERT AND MCCONKEY.
Hoo boy. That is brutal. Somehow, Herbert was able to evade two oncoming pass-rushers, dodging the first before throwing the second to the ground. He located McConkey in the short area, who put a Dolphins’ corner on skates to move the ball in range for the winning field goal.
It sums up the Chargers’ season: narrowly winning on the brilliance of Herbert and his surrounding playmakers as his protection struggles. And it sums up the Miami's D, too: a pass-rush that struggles to finish and a floundering secondary. With the defeat, the Dolphins fell to one win and five losses. Miserable second-half collapses have become standard for Mike McDaniel’s team. With another rough loss, he’s losing time to save his job.
Stat of the Week
Negative 10. That’s the passing yardage Justin Fields ended with in the New York Jets' 13-11 loss to the Broncos in London. It’s the fewest in any match since the San Diego Chargers had negative 19 in 1998. Back then, the Chargers started a rookie making his third professional start. Fields was making his 49th start.
We know who Fields is now: an elite rusher who has difficulty to read the {passing game|pass
