Patriots' Drake Maye drops truth bomb on NFL debut vs. Jets
Drake Maye unexpectedly made his official NFL debut in the closing minutes of the New England Patriots ' 24-3 loss to the New York Jets, replacing Jacoby Brissett at quarterback as the team's offense struggled.
The rookie came in for the final drive of the game, completing 4-of-8 passes for 22 yards and rushed for 12 more. Even though Maye's stats weren't great, he moved the Patriots down to the Jets' 7-yard line.
As New England neared the end zone though, Maye made one of the first mistakes of his career. He was sacked by Jets pass rusher Takk McKinley and Solomon Thomas on first-and-goal, which wound up being the final play of the game as the Patriots let the clock run out.
Maye harped on that play , along with the other sack he took earlier in the drive, when he spoke with reporters on the game, briefly focusing on the positives.
"I can't take stupid sacks," Maye said. "We were trying to get the quick game, trying to get the ball out, and I can't take sacks in that situation. But at the same time, we got some first downs, moved the chains, I made a play with my feet and hit [DeMario Douglas] over the middle, so got some good things to look at, at the same time."
Maye mostly took what the Jets defense gave him during his only drive of action. He made a couple of plays though to give the Patriots a first down on fourth-down opportunities. First, he rushed for an 11-yard gain on a fourth-and-8 from the Jets' 33-yard line. Four plays later, he completed a 15-yard pass to Douglas for a first down, setting the Patriots up at the Jets' 7-yard line.
More importantly, Maye didn't commit a turnover during his only drive, apparently following the message that head coach Jerod Mayo gave him prior to entering the game.
"Just be smart with the football," Maye said on what Mayo's message to him was before entering Thursday's game. "Don't do anything stupid and just get out of the game. But at the same time, just enjoy it. Coach Mayo is always about: When it's your moment, go try to make some plays."
Maye nearly neglected Mayo's message to him on his first professional snap. He threw a quick pass to tight end Austin Hooper, but Jets safety Michael Carter got his hands on the ball and almost had an interception.
That play allowed Maye to breathe a sigh of relief.
"No regrets, go out there and have some fun," Maye said. "First ball I get to throw gets thrown in the air, I'm glad it hits the ground so just go out there, make some plays and just let loose."
How Drake Maye felt about his Patriots debut
Obviously, the loss what top of mind for Maye when he spoke with reporters shortly after Thursday's game. However, he did seem excited to finally play in his first real NFL action.
"Obviously the first time you don't want to be out there in a blowout loss, but at the same time just wanted to go out there and make some plays and have some fun," Maye said. "Good chance to watch my first action ever. Felt a little nervous running out there, but what a night with the crowd, the atmosphere to get my first game under my belt and my first action."
Maye's next action could come soon. Mayo was non-committal about who would start at quarterback in Week 4 against the San Francisco 49ers. As the Patriots might be commencing another QB battle, Maye doesn't sense any animosity between him and Brissett.
"I know he's pulling for me," Maye said. "He's a great teammate."
Now, time will tell who the Patriots' starting quarterback will be moving forward.
