As things started to look like they were headed in the right direction over the last month, Sunday marked a massive regression point for the 2024 Patriots, as they looked lost in Miami on their way to a 34-15 loss to send their record to 3-9 overall.
In addition to 10 penalties on the day, rookie quarterback Drake Maye had a bad game with turnovers, throwing an interception while also losing a fumble on a sack. He also narrowly escaped an additional fumble, as his hand was far enough forward on a bad throw under pressure to be called an incompletion.
That’s now 7 interceptions and 3 lost fumbles in seven starts for the rookie.
By comparison, here are the rest of his first round peers:
- Caleb Williams: 5 interceptions and 4 lost fumbles in 11 starts
- Jayden Daniels: 5 interceptions and 3 lost fumbles (all in Week 1) in 12 starts
- Bo Nix: 6 interceptions and 1 fumble in 12 starts
Half the action, yet more picks than all three and just as many fumbles as Daniels.
So when Drake Maye made his weekly appearance on the WEEI Afternoon Show on Monday, it only made sense that WEEI’s Andy Hart would ask the QB about his repeated turnovers.
“This is gonna sound like a harsh question,” said Hart. “But I’m kinda just basing it on the numbers and the facts. Do you have a turnover problem? Are you turning the ball over too often?”
While Maye recognizes turnovers are unacceptable, he doesn’t classify himself as having a problem.
“As myself, you know - kind of looking back and looking at the plays, I definitely think that from the standpoint of, you know, turning the football over, you can’t do that in this league,” said Maye. “And right now I wouldn’t say it’s a problem. I think most of my turnovers are really being careless - throwing the ball careless into difficult spots.
“I think, you know, tipped interception - I think, you know, that’s just a tough one. The fumble, you know, obviously you put the ball in harm’s way of turning [over] the football. But I wouldn’t say it’s a problem.”
“Are you learning from them, at the very least?” Hart followed up. “Is there value in each of these tough lessons? Hard lessons?”
“Yeah, I mean I hope so,” said Maye. “You try to learn some things when you lose, and obviously not doing what you need to get done.”
One thing we know is a problem - the Patriots offensive line.
While the unit has played better in recent weeks, it remains a massive issue for this team. Whether it’s Maye playing under constant pressure, or simple pre-snap penalties like illegal formations or false starts, this unit has been inconsistent since Week 1.
In fact, bad O-line play has led to a fair amount of Maye’s turnovers this season, forcing the rookie into making rushed decisions that he wishes he could have back.
If-and-win this unit takes a step forward (next year?), that’s when the tough grading on Maye’s turnovers can begin.
Until then, we’re grading on a curve.