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Drake Maye showed signs of promise in his first NFL start, but it wasn't anywhere near enough for the New England Patriots to get a win against the Houston Texans as they fell, 41-21.
The Patriots' rookie quarterback seemed to recognize some of the good things that came from Sunday's game. However, Maye was more concerned with the final result than anything else when he met with reporters after the game.
“Most of my friends and family after a loss, they'll still worry more about the loss than kind of encouraging plays,” Maye said when asked about his emotions following his first start. “That's kind of the people I'm around. We care about winning. Just hate losing. That's the big thing.
“I think there's some good things to take away from it today, and I think back with Coach [Jerod] Mayo, we've got to play complementary football, and we haven't done that.”
Maye wasn't spectacular against the Texans, committing three turnovers (two interceptions and a lost fumble) in the loss. He provided Patriots fans with plenty of moments to think that he might be a legitimate franchise quarterback moving forward, though. He completed 20 of 33 passes for 243 yards and three touchdowns.
The first of those three touchdowns was arguably Maye's best pass of the day. He hit receiver Kayshon Boutte on a go route for a 40-yard touchdown right before the half, making a throw that Patriots quarterbacks in recent years haven't been able to make.
.@DrakeMaye2's first @NFL TD is to @KayshonBoutte1 🏈
📺: CBS pic.twitter.com/Oi7BpFvq6H
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) October 13, 2024
Maye said that the Texans' decision to play in man coverage on that play gave him the opportunity to make that deep throw. He also thinks the personnel that the team has at receiver will allow him to make deep passes moving forward.
“I felt like in this group we can push the ball down the field and make plays in the passing game, so we've just got to keep repping it and see what you like and I’ve got to make the throws, that’s the bottom line,” Maye said. “Make better throws.”
That throw was part of a two-minute drill where the Patriots went 84 yards on just five plays and 48 seconds. Maye shared that he was actually pretty comfortable during that two-minute drill.
“I think the two-minute time is a great time for a quarterback to kind of get some passes and get some plays that we're comfortable with under my belt,” Maye said. “It was a lot easier in two-minute than in practice when the guys actually come back there and tackle me in the back. Able to make some plays.
How Drake Maye assessed his performance in his first start as the Patriots QB
Prior to the touchdown pass to Boutte, Maye and the Patriots' offense had struggled to move the ball down the field. They were being shut out to that point and had yet to get the ball into Texans' territory. Maye admitted that he was a little “amped up” to start, but that touchdown pass allowed him to settle in a bit.
“The guys around me were great trying to settle me down, and Jacoby [Brissett] was a big part of that, slowed me down on the sideline pregame,” Maye said. “Once we got that first drive, it was three-and-out, and I could have probably checked it down on the under. But we've got some stuff to look back and learn from, but I also feel like we did some good things.”
Still, Maye harped over the miscues that he and the offense made.
“I think we just hurt ourselves today. I think that's the biggest thing,” Maye said. “I think we put the defense in bad spots, and with how good our defense is, that's the last thing we can do. We can't – when the ball is in the red zone, giving the other team the ball in the red zone just makes it hard on them. It starts with me, and I feel like I wish I could have some throws back, and especially the first interception.”
Maye will look to play a cleaner game in his second career start in Week 7. He and the Patriots will travel to London to take on the 1-5 Jacksonville Jaguars.
