The New England Patriots have made it clear that the only silver lining to come from their 1-6, dead-last in the AFC East start has been the 2025 NFL Draft.
Just like last season, even with Bill Belichick out and Jerod Mayo in, the Patriots haven’t improved in terms of taking a competitive stride. New England’s humiliated itself time and time again, losing six straight after opening up the year with an impressive Week 1 win over the — albeit injury-hindered — Cincinnati Bengals. Now, with tanking quickly becoming the ideal route for the Patriots, it seems as though Mayo’s subpar coaching debut has overshadowed what should be the primary conversation topic coming out of Foxboro.
“Drake Maye has thrown for over 500 yards his first two starts in the NFL, five touchdowns and looked better from start one to start two,” George Balekji said on NESN’s “Foxboro Rush” podcast. “The Patriots hit a home run with the quarterback they drafted with a top-three pick. No one’s talking about it. Everyone’s saying, ‘Are the Patriots soft? Why is Jerod Mayo the head coach?’ That’s what everyone’s talking about.”
New England tossed Maye into the fire, first for a garbage time stretch against the New York Jets in Week 3. Then, the 22-year-old was officially promoted to the starter quarterback role ahead of Week 6 against the Houston Texans, where Maye threw for 243 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Most recently, against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 7, Maye threw for an improved 276 yards with two touchdowns and zero picks.
Not too shabby, but not enough to save New England — for now.
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Watch the full episode of NESN’s “Foxboro Rush” podcast here:
Featured image via Kirby Lee/Imagn Images
