Dan Orlovsky Blasts Patriots For ‘Bad Decision’ With Drake Maye

Dan Orlovsky believes the Patriots are doing a disservice to Drake Maye.

New England tried to stay patient with Maye, the third overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. But after five consecutive games with a listless offense, the Patriots decided to hand the keys over to the rookie quarterback, who’s set to make his first regular-season start Sunday at Gillette Stadium.

Orlovsky on the latest “NFL Live” episode was asked if the Patriots made the right call replacing Jacoby Brissett with Maye ahead of Week 6. The former NFL quarterback confidently believed it was “absolutely not” a practical move by Jerod Mayo and company.

“This is a bad decision in New England,” Orlovsky said Tuesday on ESPN. “One, their offensive line is the worst pass-blocking offensive line in the NFL. Right now, it is the worst. Jacoby Brissett has been pressured on 47% of his dropback passes. That 47% is the highest number for a quarterback since 2006. You want to take a rookie quarterback and set him up to struggle? Put him behind this New England offensive line. On top of that, it’s probably a bottom-five group wide receiver-wise when it comes to getting open.”

To stack the odds even higher against Maye, he will make his highly anticipated debut against a Houston Texans defense that entered Week 6 ranked eighth in the NFL in sacks and fifth in fewest passing yards allowed.

All told, the Patriots very well could come to regret throwing the 22-year-old into the fire this weekend.