The New England Patriots‘ offense is in the midst of an identity crisis, following Thursday night’s blowout loss at the hands of the AFC East rival New York Jets.
In front of a national television audience, an offense that had a modicum of success as a run-based scheme spearheaded by Rhamondre Stevenson managed just 139 yards of total offense, with only 78 coming from the ground game during a 24-3 shellacking.
Things got so bad for the Patriots that head coach Jerod Mayo removed quarterback Jacoby Brissett from the game in the fourth quarter to get No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye some reps.
Could New England Patriots Be Primed to Start Drake Maye?
According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, the switch to Maye could be permanent and could be coming soon for the Patriots.
“But Maye’s progress has gotten to the point where the expectation is he’ll earn his way on to the field relatively soon,” Breer wrote Monday. “With the one caveat being that the Patriots’ offense will have to show (as it did against the Cincinnati Bengals, then didn’t against the Jets) that it can play the way it needs to in order to support a rookie quarterback.”
The Patriots’ offensive line hasn’t looked anywhere close to being ready to keep Maye upright, nor has New England’s receiving corps been able to create consistent separation.
If the baseline requirement is the offense being functional, it may take a few more weeks of building chemistry and cohesion to be ready to support a rookie quarterback with as much invested in him as the Patriots have in Maye.
But, it seems like Maye watch may be kicking into overdrive in New England.
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