What Drake Maye Showed Jerod Mayo In Patriots-Eagles Preseason Duel

The New England Patriots received a greater sample size from quarterback Drake Maye during Thursday night’s 14-13 preseason loss to the Philadelphia Eagles at Gillette Stadium, which left an impression on first-year head coach Jerod Mayo.

Maye showed efficient flashes throughout the night, from nearly connecting with wideout Javon Baker on a deep third-quarter heave to rushing in for a go-ahead touchdown in the second quarter to put the Patriots up, 10-3. The 21-year-old rookie finished completing 6-of-11 attempts while totaling 47 yards, splitting time on the field with each of New England’s four quarterbacks — Jacoby Brissett, Joe Milton III and Bailey Zappe.

“He had great composure,” Mayo told reporters, per team-provided video. “I thought it was a good drive. I thought he went out there and did a lot of good things. So, hopefully, he can build on that and see how this week goes. … I look forward to seeing how he builds off of today, but he did a lot of good things.”

Questions began — and continue — to swirl around the current state of the organization’s quarterback dilemma. Maye inherited that once New England took the North Carolina product with its third overall selection in April’s NFL draft. When the Patriots opened up their preseason play against the Carolina Panthers, Maye logged just three pass attempts in just one series. Mayo attributed that lack of on-field time to New England’s “under construction” offensive line. Now, with the team inching closer to the start of its regular season, Maye’s latest performance adds more fuel to the ever-growing discussion of who should be the Week 1 starter.

“I think every time you get out there, you kind of get more and more confident,” Maye told reporters postgame, per team-provided video. “First off, it’s always gonna be the nerves going out there, running out there the first time. But other than that, I think the more reps are only gonna help me and at the end of the day, I’m just fortunate to be able to get some reps and make the most of my opportunities.”