Patriots list Drake Maye as questionable vs. Bills after saying he was expected to start
Christian Gonzalez and Ja'Lynn Polk were among the players ruled out.
Drake Maye stated earlier in the week that he felt “great” and that he expected to start for the Patriots against the Bills in their season finale. However, the team’s final injury report of the week suggests his status for Sunday’s game is still in the air.
The Patriots listed Maye as “questionable” for Sunday’s game against the Bills due to a hand injury. Meanwhile, cornerback Christian Gonzalez (concussion), center Ben Brown (concussion), wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk (shoulder), and safety Jabrill Peppers (hamstring) have been ruled out.
But Maye’s status for Sunday’s game has been under the microscope since the start of the week. He left the Patriots’ Week 17 loss to the Chargers for a drive due to a head injury before returning after clearing his concussion evaluation.
The injury concern isn’t the only reason why there have been questions over Maye’s status for Sunday’s game, though. New England controls its own destiny to secure the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, with a loss guaranteeing that it will hold the top pick. As the Bills are expected to play Josh Allen and their starters for a very little amount of Sunday’s game, an upset win for the Patriots is, in theory, more plausible.
Patriots offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt has insisted that Maye would be under center for the start of Sunday’s game.
“Drake looked good [Thursday]. He’s ready to go. He’ll be starting the game for sure,” Van Pelt said Thursday. “I’m excited to get another opportunity … more opportunities for him to grow.
“This gives him an opportunity to go out and play a team we just played two weeks ago. Have a good understanding of what they did in our game and see how well we respond in this game.”
Additionally, Jerod Mayo said on Wednesday that Maye will play if he’s “healthy and ready to go.” On Friday, Mayo added that Maye’s hand injury has had “no effect” on what he’s seen from his rookie quarterback in practice this week.
Even as Maye said on Wednesday that he felt “great” twice, he’s been limited in practice all week. That’s allowed sixth-round rookie Joe Milton to earn snaps at practice this week.
Mayo said that Milton has “looked good” at practice this week, but didn’t make a firm commitment on his role in Sunday’s game.
“All three quarterbacks will be at the game,” Mayo said when asked if there’s a plan for Milton to be on the gameday roster.
“We’ll see how today goes, and it’s always a possibility,” Mayo added when asked if Milton’s status as the third-string quarterback will change for Sunday’s game.
Milton hasn’t played in a regular-season game yet this season. When Maye suffered a concussion in October, Milton was the emergency backup behind Jacoby Brissett. Brissett also received the non-Maye snaps at quarterback in their loss to the Chargers.
Mayo recognized that it could he helpful to play Milton in Sunday’s game for future evaluation, but added that it’s tough to do when Maye needs snaps as well.
“It’s always helpful to see players who haven’t played as much during the season go out there and play in a regular season game,” Mayo said.
“We also talk about developing Drake Maye at the same time, so it’s tough. He’s been our emergency quarterback.”
In addition to Maye, safety Kyle Dugger (ankle/quadricep), tight end Hunter Henry (foot), linebacker Anfernee Jennings (knee), Titus Leo (ankle), and linebacker Sione Takitaki (knee) are also listed as questionable for Sunday’s game.
As the Patriots are balancing injuries and potential draft pick consideration in Week 18, Mayo said that the team is still prioritizing winning.
“I said as a player, as a coach, we’ve always – anytime we step on the football field, we expect to go out there, play at a high level and win,” Mayo said.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com