Year 2 of Drake Maye started off a little shaky, which was typical of his performances in the preseason.
With some bright spots in between, it ended the same way it began.
Bottom line: Week 1 against the Las Vegas Raiders didn’t showcase the Maye the Patriots need to win games.
The Patriots had a lead at the half, but could generate little to no offense in the second half.
Maye finished 30 of 46 for 287 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He was sacked three times in the 20-13 loss to Las Vegas.
This was the first extended view of Maye running a new offense, with several new weapons. Mostly, it was a mixed bag.
While he made some great throws in the first half, he struggled to make plays in the second.
Maye tends to get a little too amped up at the start of games and that was still the case against the Las Vegas Raiders. He airmailed a pass to a wide open DeMario Douglas on a third down play during the Patriots first series.
After that, Maye settled in.
He made some money throws en route to completing 14 of 20 passes for 150 yards and a touchdown in the first half.
His TD throw to Douglas was picture-perfect in the end zone. His back shoulder throw to Kayshon Boutte (24-yard-gain) and a 27-yarder to Henry were also well-placed.
By the same token, he missed some wide open receivers, unable to take advantage of the gimmes, particularly as the game wore on. The weather, of course, may have contributed to that, as the Pats and Raiders played in a constant rain.
The Raiders also blitzed more in the second half, and Maye didn’t have as much time. It also didn’t help that the run game could never get untracked.
On the plus side, Maye has established a nice chemistry with Boutte (6 catches, 103 yards) while Henry (4 catches, 66 yards) was his go-to-guy last season. He also got it going with Diggs (6 catches, 57 yards) in the second half. But it was too little, too late.
That half was a disaster with the only points scored – a field goal – in the final minute with the game pretty much settled.
The Patriots got the ball first, looking to add to a 10-7 lead, drove to midfied after starting on the 12, and Maye made a hunge blunder. He made a terrible throw intended for Diggs that was picked off by Isaiah Pola-Mao.
He was plagued by turnovers last year, and this was a killer, with the Raiders driving for a score to take a 14-10 lead. The Raiders never looked back.
Story by Karen Guregian, masslive.com.
