Four Bold Predictions As Patriots Enter Second Half Of Season

The New England Patriots don’t have much, if anything, to play for over their final eight games of the season.

The Patriots are at the very bottom of the NFL with a 2-7 record and the fan base’s attention already is on what high draft pick the franchise will end up with.

But that doesn’t mean the Patriots aren’t worth watching as they wrap up a disastrous season. There’s always Drake Maye’s all-important development to stay tuned in to and to see if a young player on either side of the ball emerges. And if that all fails, perhaps Patriots fans can take a little sports schadenfreude out of the misery and laugh about how far things have fallen.

Here are four bold predictions for the Patriots as they begin the second half of their season:

Patriots lose out
Sorry to put a damper on things to start but the Patriots won’t add to the win column until the 2025 season. The Patriots have the fifth-toughest remaining schedule in the league with two games left against the Buffalo Bills and a matchup with a Miami Dolphins squad that just got Tua Tagovailoa back. Their best shot to pick up a win could come this week against the Chicago Bears, who have their own internal issues, or perhaps they could catch either the Los Angeles Rams or Los Angeles Chargers sleeping when they travel to Gillette Stadium.

But Jerod Mayo more than likely will end his first season as Patriots head coach with a 2-15 record. That would put Mayo in the company of Patriots coaches like Rod Rust, Dick MacPherson and Ron Erhardt. That’s not good.

Drake Maye contends for Offensive Rookie of the Year
Maye got off to a late start in the end-of-season award race when the Patriots went with Jacoby Brissett over the rookie signal-caller. But the 22-year-old is making up ground fast by putting up big stats on a bad team. He threw for 206 yards and one touchdown — as time expired in regulation — while also running for 95 yards on eight carries against the Tennessee Titans. Want another bold prediction? Maye will have a 300-yard passing, 100-yard rushing game and we’ll pick him to do that in Week 15 against the Arizona Cardinals.

A performance like that certainly would cement Maye’s place in the Offensive Rookie of the Year conversation. Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels is the runaway favorite at the moment, but perhaps Maye, who has the fourth-best odds at DraftKings Sportsbook, can close the gap.

Alex Van Pelt becomes the scapegoat
The season has been a mess for the Patriots both offensively and defensively. But looking around the league it’s clear Van Pelt’s offensive system is archaic and won’t get the most out of Maye. New England’s ground game has dried up significantly, too, after showing some promise in that area to begin the season. Scoring just over two touchdowns a game isn’t going to cut it even if the Patriots are devoid of playmakers. Van Pelt’s job is to scheme things up to produce consistent offense — the Patriots rank last in yards per game heading into their matchup with the Bears — and he’s just not doing that. New England is headed for a fifth different offensive coordinator in as many seasons.

Marcus Jones becomes a top receiver
The Patriots have plenty of wide receivers who are not producing. Ja’Lynn Polk. Tyquan Thornton. Javon Baker. The list goes on and on. Might as well give Marcus Jones a shot on offense. Jones makes plays from both his cornerback position and as a punt returner and he showed during his rookie season that he can provide a spark offensively as well. Jones had four receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown in 2022.

The Patriots legitimately have nothing to lose by trotting out Jones for a handful of offensive plays per game. See if he can break a big gain off a slant route or make some defenders miss after a bubble screen. Maye needs reliable playmakers around him and the Patriots could find out if Jones is one. And perhaps playing Jones on both sides of the ball foreshadows the type of player they want to select in the 2025 NFL Draft.