Drake Maye looks ready, but the Patriots offensive line definitely isn't

For Drake Maye, the final preseason game was supposed to be another stepping-stone affair as the Patriots continue to waffle about whether they actually have a quarterback competition. New England fans wanted to see him show out and make some plays, and Maye certainly stepped up, leading a couple of impressive drives that culminated with one in which he threw a touchdown pass to Kevin Harris.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that New England’s offensive line is nowhere near ready. The unit’s first half against Washington was a constant barrage of penalties, so there’s a lot to fix if the Patriots are going to even consider throwing Maye to the wolves—er, Bengals—in their road opener.

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Watching Jacoby Brissett get blasted was a game-changer for New England

Every coach’s worst nightmare is seeing his starting quarterback get injured in the preseason, especially in the final game, after nursing the QB through several scripted cameos. That nightmare nearly became a reality for new Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo in the first quarter, though, when Brissett got blasted by KJ Henry and driven hard to the ground.

Brissett came up wincing and holding his right shoulder. An injury would have changed New England’s season completely, but Brissett did look okay even though he was quickly declared questionable for the second half.

Maye came in shortly after that, and he struggled with a completely different set of issues, none of which were his fault. Backup center Nick Leverett botched two snaps that nearly put Maye in harm’s way, and for some reason, New England’s tackles seemed incapable of staying in the proper alignment at the line of scrimmage.

The Patriots posted a total of eight plays in the sloppy half, although it seemed like more for their fans, who grew used to seeing mistake-free football under the strict tutelage of former head coach Bill Belichick.

The real issue in all this isn’t whether Drake Maye is ready. He’s clearly capable of running an NFL offense, but what he’s currently isn’t that at all. It’s a unit that plays like it’s still early in training camp, struggling to get on the same page and execute even the basics like lining up and hitting the snap count together properly.

Drake Maye can definitely make all the throws

The good news for New England is that Drake Maye can definitely make all the throws necessary to be an accomplished NFL quarterback. He made them in the pocket and on the run, and he showcased his running ability during New England’s first drive to earn their initial first down.

Maye spread the ball around nicely, too. Second-round draft pick Ja’Lynn Polk made a couple of solid catches, and so did new possession receiver KJ Osborne, the former Minnesota Viking. Both backs caught well-thrown check-down passes, and there were times when the Patriots offense looked light years ahead of last year's stumbling, borderline inept group.

The North Carolina product also displayed impressive pocket awareness, staying in the pocket for as long as necessary and breaking ranks to make plays when that was required. We were all told when Maye was drafted that his footwork would be a serious issue, but most of his throws were made off a solid foundation and he only tried to force risky throws a couple of times.

Now for the tough decision

The fun part of all this is coming, though. Fans will be clamoring for Maye to start, and owner Bob Kraft will doubtless weigh in with a similar opinion. Putting Drake Maye behind that offensive line seems like the quickest way to get their new franchise quarterback hurt, but stranger things have happened, and no one would be surprised to see Maye under center and running for his life as the Patriots move on to Cincinnati for their season opener.

Aritcle originally written by Bob McCullough