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Maye impresses, O-line implodes, and other quick takeaways from Patriots’ preseason loss to Commanders
Even with a strong showing from Drake Maye, a brutal night from the offensive line and key injuries loomed large on Sunday.
The good news? The Patriots’ top asset in rookie QB Drake Maye continues to impress.
The bad news? New England’s offensive line might be so putrid that Jerod Mayo and Co. could be better off sitting Maye instead of trotting him out there in front of that five-man unit next month.
For the second straight preseason game, Maye impressed on Sunday night in New England’s 20-10 loss to the Washington Commanders, accumulating 143 total yards and scoring a touchdown over five total series.
But the continued strides made by Maye were offset by a downright atrocious showing from the offensive line, coupled with a pair of injuries that will loom large in the weeks leading up to Week 1.
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Here are a few quick takeaways from Sunday’s loss:
Drake Maye continues to look the part as QB1
After narrowing the gap between himself and Jacoby Brissett after a promising performance last week against the Eagles, Maye continued to showcase the potential on Sunday that has New England hoping it has its next franchise QB in place.
The 21-year-old signal-caller was dynamite in his first drive early in the first quarter against Washington, leading New England on an 11-play, 88-yard drive that resulted in an 18-yard touchdown by Kevin Harris.
Maye certainly didn’t get much help from his offensive line (more on that shortly), but the rookie still managed to move the chains thanks to his wheels and a few clutch throws downfield.
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He scrambled on a 3rd-and-14 for 17 yards to pick up a first down early in the drive before later hitting fellow rookie Ja’Lynn Polk for a 29-yard pickup.
A third-down conversion off a 16-yard completion to DeMario Douglas allowed Maye and the Patriots to push the ball into the red zone, with Maye later hitting Harris for the eventual score.
In total, Maye led New England on five total drives, completing 13 of his 20 throws for 126 yards and a touchdown while also gaining 17 yards off of three rushes.
Maye should have finished his latest appearance with a 48-yard touchdown to K.J. Osborn in the final minute of the second quarter, but it was wiped out by an illegal formation penalty against New England.
Yes, Maye continues to look like a promising QB who probably could earn the starting nod in Week 1. But putting him in front of this O-line might not be beneficial to anyone.
An embarrassing night for the O-line
It’s a stark indictment over the state of this offensive line that New England legitimately may not want to play a promising rookie like Maye solely because of the JV-level execution routinely playing out in front of him.
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Seriously, it was downright ugly all night.
In the first half alone, New England’s O-line was knocked for:
A sack against presumed QB1 Jacoby Brissett that led to a shoulder injury.
Four illegal formation penalties, including one against Chukwuma Okorafor that wiped out Maye’s second touchdown to Osborn.
Three total holding penalties.
Two bad snaps — including one that nearly backed Maye up to New England’s own end zone.
One false start.
And one dislodged shoe after Sidy Sow inadvertently stepped on Maye’s foot.
Sure, David Andrews didn’t play on Sunday, but just about everyone else had a night to forget up front for New England — even camp standouts like Layden Robinson.
Elsewhere, backup center Nick Leverett couldn’t clearly snap the ball, while Okorafor could barely get lined up properly.
Add in the fact that Washington was primarily playing its second and third-string players, and fans should be very worried about whoever is lining up under center for New England in Week 1 — at least if this O-line continues to submit performances like this.
Brissett, Sow injured
To make matters worse, the Patriots were also dealt two critical injuries that could further complicate Mayo’s roster decisions ahead of Week 1 against the Bengals.
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Even though Jacoby Brissett entered Sunday as the presumed QB1, the veteran signal-caller was injured on his lone drive against the Commanders, with KJ Henry slamming him in the turf.
Brissett — who completed 2-of-4 of his passes for 19 yards over just eight snaps — was only expected to play one or two drives, but New England officially designated him as questionable to return due to a shoulder injury.
New England might be hesitant about playing Maye at the start of the year due to this porous O-line, but Brissett’s health could impact that decision-making.
However, Mayo did seem confident postgame that Brissett will be good to go moving forward.
“He said he was good,” Mayo said. “We’ll find out tomorrow.”
The Patriots’ already lackluster O-line also took a hit in the second quarter after second-year guard Sidy Sow suffered an ankle injury. He eventually walked off under his own power, but was ruled out for the remainder of the game.
Sow, who has largely remained at the top of the depth chart at left guard this preseason, would be a major loss if this injury carried over into the regular season.
Milton leads New England on scoring drive
As far as other offensive standouts, Joe Milton III led New England on a scoring drive over his four series, with Chad Ryland capping a 10-play, 37-yard drive in the third quarter with a 38-yard field goal.
Milton completed five of his 17 throws for 78 yards — 34 of which came off a catch from Matt Landers — while also scrambling for 23 yards off of three rush attempts.
Terrell Jennings finished with a team-high 36 yards off of six rushing attempts, while Polk reeled in two of his three catches for 33 yards. JaMycal Hasty also impressed with 21 rushing yards and 24 receiving yards. Fellow rookie Javon Baker had two catches for 33 yards, but was also targeted seven total times.
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Kayshon Boutte is currently on the roster bubble, with the second-year wideout finishing Sunday with zero catches off of one target.
Good and bad on defense
A few players looking to solidify their spots on the 53-man roster had strong nights against Washington, with linebacker Joe Giles-Harris picking off Commanders QB Jeff Driskel in the second quarter.
Fellow linebacker Christian Ellis finished with a team-high 11 tackles, but had to exit the game in the second half due to a head injury.
Even with some strong individual performances, New England’s second and third-string defenders let a lead slip away for the second straight preseason game, with a defensive pass interference call against Azizi Hearn (45 yards) setting up Washington’s go-ahead touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.
To add insult to injury, Hearn was trucked over by Washington QB Trace McSorley in the closing minutes of the game.
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10:55: Milton takes a hit – but makes a play. Matt Landers gains 34 yards on the catch.
10:50: A DPI on Azizi Hearn leads to a Commanders touchdown. 13-10 Washington.
10:38: Linebacker Christian Ellis is ruled out for the rest of the game with a head injury. Brutal injury luck – as he was leading the team with 11 tackles tonight.
10:33: Washington does open the fourth quarter with a field goal of their own — it’s 10-6 and we’ll see if Milton gets another drive.
10:29: End Third: Patriots holding onto a 10-3 lead.
10:19: Milton does lead New England down the field en route to a scoring drive. Ryland connects on a 38-yard field gal and the Patriots take a 10-3 lead.
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10:14: Joe Milton using his legs to gain some yardage on this drive.
10:05: Milton’s first throw of the night was intercepted, but it was quickly called back after Reagor was interfered with.
9:59: Joe Milton enters the game for New England. Maye’s night is over.
9:58: Trace McSorely leads Washington down the field and the Commanders make it a 7-3 game with a field goal. We’ll see who starts at QB for New England in the second half.
9:51: Now Sidy Sow has been downgraded to OUT.
9:50: Isaiah Bolden nearly starts the second half with a pick.
9:36: Drake Maye looks very good — and I wouldn’t put him anywhere near this putrid offensive line.
9:34: And Joey Slye’s kick is no good.
HALFTIME: Patriots lead the Commanders, 7-0.
9:30: A beautiful throw from Maye leads to a 48-yard touchdown from Osborn — and it gets wiped out by an illegal formation.
This is JV-level.
9:20: And now Sidy Sow is banged up for New England. Seems like an ankle injury as he makes his way over to the blue tent.
9:15: A reminder that this is Washington’s 2nd and 3rd-string players. I don’t think you can roll out Drake Maye in Week 1 — not with this pass protection in front of him.
9:13: Doesn’t look like Brissett was coming back into the game anyway, but Brissett is indeed banged up because of that first-quarter sack.
9:10: This is just embarrassing at this point.
9:05: Just an embarrassing performance from the Patriots’ O-line tonight. Bad snaps, illegal formations — ugly stuff.
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9:03: Joe Giles-Harris with a nice pick against Jeff Driskel. Will certainly help his case to make the 53-man roster.
8:55: Make that 2 illegal formation penalties in 3 offensive snaps against Okorafor. This O-line is absolutely brutal.
8:47: Shoeless Drake Maye >>> Shoeless Joe Jackson
8:40: Really encouraging start from Maye. He goes 5/6 for 71 yards and a touchdown on that drive.
8:40: End First: Patriots lead Washington, 7-0.
8:39: Touchdown Patriots. Maye hits Kevin Harris for a 17-yard score. Ryland with the extra point.
7-0 Patriots.
8:38: Yet another 3rd-down conversion from Maye – Pop Douglas picks up 16 yards here.
8:35: That’s a beautiful throw from Drake Maye to Polk — gain of 29 yards.
8:33: Brutal drive from Nick Leverett so far. David Andrews better not get hurt.
8:32: Drake Maye – dual-threat QB? He gains 17 yards on the ground on a 3rd-and-14.
8:30: Doesn’t seem like Brissett’s injury is serious.
8:28: Brutal snap from Leverett out of the shotgun. Maye falls on the ball. Not a great start.
8:23: Sure enough, it’s Drake Maye after just one series from Brissett. Brissett was only supposed to get one or two series, but he also looked banged up after taking that sack.
Brissett: 2-for-4, 19 yards. Eight snaps. One crushing sack.
8:13: Brutal miscommunication in pass protection leads to Brissett getting crushed. Seems a little shaken up after the play.
8:10: Gibson for 13 yards to move the chains. Nice play by Brissett to avoid the pressure.
8:06: The Pats win the toss and elect to receive. Offense up first.
8:01: New England’s projected O-line:
RT – Onwenu RG – Robinson C – Leverett LG – Sow LT – Okorafor
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8:00: A look at the expected inactives for New England.
7:55: Speaking on 98.5 The Sports Hub, Jerod Mayo notes that Jacoby Brissett will play a “series or two” before turning things over to Drake Maye for the remainder of the first half.
7:50: Not a lot to keep tabs on with Washington. No Jayden Daniels is not a surprise, but still a bummer.
7:35: We’ve finally made it to the final week of preseason action. Patriots-Commanders coming up shortly.
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