With the quarterback competition still ongoing in New England, Jacoby Brissett was injured and Drake Maye showed his skills in the Patriots’ final exhibition game against the Washington Commanders on Sunday night.
Brissett got the start against Washington’s reserves and suffered some the Patriots announced injured his right shoulder on New England’s first drive of the game. Commanders defensive end KJ Wright ran untouched through the New England backfield and tackled Brissett, pushing his body into the grass.
Brissett grimaced after the hit, but stayed in the game to finish the drive. He threw two more passes before the Patriots scored. When New England’s offense took the field, Maye was quarterback.
Meanwhile, cameras captured Brissett clutching his shoulder on the sideline, but it was unclear how much of the decision was injury-related. Head coach Jerod Mayo said before the game that Brissett was expected to play only a series or two.
The Patriots finally announced in the second quarter that Brissett had suffered a right shoulder injury. He was officially listed as questionable to return, but his night in a preseason game was clearly over.
Maye led the offense until the end of the first half. His first drive was his most impressive performance of the preseason. With third-and-14 inside the New England 10-yard line ahead of him, Maye found a crease at the line of scrimmage and broke loose for a scramble through a Commanders defense playing against a deep pass.
Maye is best known for his arm strength, which he developed in North Carolina. He is a star in making moves with his feet and is athletic.
Two plays later, Maye showed off his arm. On second-and-2 from the New England 33-yard line, Maye found fellow rookie Ja’Lynn Polk (second-round pick) on a play-action pass down field out of reach of Commanders cornerback Noah Igbinoghene. The play went for 29 yards and a first down.
Maye completed three more passes during the drive, ending with a swing pass to running back Kevin Harris for an 18-yard touchdown.
Maye finished the drive by completing 5 of 6 passes for 71 yards and the score, plus his 17-yard scramble.
Maye finished the first half for New England. The Patriots didn’t score again, but Maye showed his potential with a deep touchdown that was canceled by a penalty when he had a chance in the two-minute drill.
With second-and-10 on Washington’s 48-yard line, Maye escaped pressure and ran left before throwing a deep downfield pass to KJ Osborn, who was wide open near the sideline at the 10-yard line. Osbrone then ran it in for a potential touchdown.
But a formation penalty on left tackle Chukwuma Okorafor nullified the play, a sign of an offensive line that struggled throughout the first half against Washington’s reserves.
Maye finished the first half 13-of-20 passing for 126 yards (6.3 yards per attempt) with a touchdown and no turnovers. He added 17 yards on the ground. He did not return for the start of the second half.
Once again, Maye wasn’t facing NFL starters on defense. But the effort was certainly a confidence booster for a rookie quarterback fresh out of training camp.
The question now is: Who starts in Week 1 against the Cincinnati Bengals? Maye — the No. 3 pick in April’s draft — is clearly the starter of the future. But there’s a strong argument to keep him on the bench early in his career.
Early reports out of training camp were that Maye was still inexperienced and would benefit from some more experience on the sideline. And there’s no rush in New England. This Patriots team isn’t built to win right now and isn’t expected to come close to contending in the AFC East. It’s an ideal situation to ease a young quarterback into his new role, especially with a seasoned veteran and capable starter in Brissett on the roster.
Maye has made strides since then, including in Sunday’s game and in the pre-season in Week 2 against the Philadelphia Eagles, which Mayo spoke highly of.
“He’s definitely taken a step forward,” Mayo said after the Eagles game. “The competition isn’t over. They’re still going at it and they’ve got to prove not only themselves and their coaches, but their teammates. So it’s definitely still a competition.”
Of course, if Brissett is truly injured, that changes the calculus of Mayo’s decision. The preseason is over, and the Patriots have two weeks off from competition before their season opener on Sept. 8 — a period during which Mayo will name a starting quarterback.
