Patriots
“It will be the same old story with Drake Maye in, if he replaces Jacoby Brissett.”
The Patriots’ passing game had another lackluster performance on Sunday evening against the 49ers.
In Jacoby Brissett’s fourth-straight start, the veteran QB completed 19 of his 32 passes for just 168 total passing yards — which actually stood as an improvement over the team’s previous aerial output (102 average passing yards through their first three games).
Brissett’s spot atop the Patriots’ depth chart is due in large part to New England wanting to keep rookie Drake Maye away from the punishment that comes with playing in front of this porous offensive line.
Sure enough, Brissett was sacked six times in Sunday’s loss, just a little over a week removed from New England giving up seven sacks and 15 QB hits to the Jets.
Still, New England’s offense once again severely lacked any semblance of big-play capabilities, with the Patriots generating just one play over 13 yards (a 21-yard pickup to Ja’Lynn Polk) before Antonio Gibson reeled in a 50-yard pass on the team’s final drive of the evening.
Add in Brissett’s costly pick-six and a lost fumble in the fourth at Levi’s Stadium, and New England’s already listless offense is hanging on the ropes just four weeks into the new season.
But count Patriots legend Rob Gronkowski among those who doesn’t believe that New England should turn to rookie Drake Maye in Week 5 — not with this supporting cast around him.
“New England Patriots fans, I know what you’re saying. ‘Put Drake Maye in, this offense needs a spark,’” Gronkowski said on FOX’s Patriots-49ers halftime show. “But I’m telling you, it will be the same old story with Drake Maye in, if he replaces Jacoby Brissett. He’ll be getting sacked.
“The offensive line will be letting guys go through, putting pressure on him. You don’t want to ruin his confidence. Wait until at least Week 12.”
After New England’s eventual 30-13 loss to San Francisco, head coach Jerod Mayo offered up a similar sentiment when it came to Brissett and Maye’s respective spots on the depth chart.
“At this point, Jacoby is our starting quarterback,” Mayo said. “I haven’t watched any film or anything like that. He’s been a great leader. He just broke the huddle down after I talked to the guys. We’ve got to watch the film. We have a long flight to go back and watch the film and we’re always evaluating every single position.”
With New England likely staring at another season in the cellar of the NFL standings, one could make the case that the Patriots should give Maye starting reps now, even if the results both on the field and in the win column are severely lacking in 2024.
But the Patriots invite the risk of Maye either getting injured or having his internal clock sped up playing in front of this offensive line, especially with the Patriots suffering more injuries to key cogs like starting center David Andrews.
“What I will say about Jacoby is that he’s tough both mentally and physically,” Mayo said. “This guy is going out there and he’s taking some huge shots and continues to get back up. Sometimes you’re like ‘man is he OK?’ and you watch him for a while, but he is a tough guy and I would never use the word skittish with a guy like that.”
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