The Drake Maye Era Of The Patriots Has Begun!

The New England Patriots have announced Drake Maye as the starting quarterback this week at home against the Houston Texans. I wanted to say, "They have finally done it!" like we just won our seventh Super Bowl, but I don't want to come off as biased.

I understand the comment section of this article could be full of things like "The offensive line is awful," "He has no weapons," and "The offensive system sucks," which is great because those are all things to be covered in this article.

Drake Maye's Impact On The Offensive Line

Everyone knows that Brissett is the veteran who knows this system, which leads everyone to believe that he will be able to get the ball out on time and in rhythm. Unfortunately, they are running into the same issue Brissett has been dealing with his whole career; his throwing motion is like the slow windups that caused the MLB to induce a pitch clock.

Jacoby is not mobile enough to operate off-schedule either, so he takes too long to get the ball out once he makes a decision and can't make anything happen when the play breaks down. Drake Maye has a quick release once he makes a decision.

It doesn't seem like much, but an extra half a second is a big difference. Maye can also use his legs to get out of the pocket and create something on big downs or in the Red Zone. The line will be bad this season, and Maye will get hit, but he's a football player, and that's what they do. Injuries are scary but can happen even with the best protection and weapons.

The Weapons Aren't Good Enough For Maye

Would Acquiring Devante Adams make me feel better about Drake getting the start? Absolutely, it would, but we have to deal with what we have, which isn't elite, but it's not the worst group.

Ja'Lynn Polk has been solid for a rookie, and Demario Douglas looks like he can be a factor with more opportunities. Hunter Henry is an average TE, Mondre, and Gibson run hard and take some pressure away from Maye. Kendrick Bourne is back. Hopefully, he is still the player he was. Baker, Osborn, Hooper, and Boutte can also be serviceable subs.

There have been plays with open players that Brissett hasn't hit even when he's had time to go through his check-downs. Maye himself is a threat that defenses have to adjust for, and if they don't, that's when he can hurt them. None of these players are significant, but they are not the worst group I've ever seen.

AVP Won't Put Maye In Successful Spot

Alex Van Pelt is definitely a landmine that could be horrible, but Brissett, with a terrible playcaller, is safe. Averaging 139 yards a game and only having two passing touchdowns through five weeks isn't enough.

I hope to see more RPO, motions, and shotgun formations with Maye because he is more comfortable with those things. He doesn't need to be jammed into an offense that doesn't fit his play style, or it will be a problem, at least for this year.

Van Pelt needs to establish the run at the start of this game against the Texans. Once that happens, he can call play-action crossing patterns at multiple levels of the field, and Maye's mobility can keep these alive to push the ball downfield. Successfully doing this will also create more lanes for the run game.

End Of Rant

Having Maye start this year will allow us to see the flashes of potential he could have and get excited about this new era of Patriots football. Some people are upset, and that's fine, but I think this kid is the real deal, and we will get a taste of it this weekend. I wouldn't be surprised if Drake goes out there and puts on a show against the Texans, if he does I will be keeping the receipts.

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