Maye has fumbled six times in their first two playoff games.
Throughout his first two career playoff starts, Patriots quarterback Drake Maye has experienced his share of growing pains. Still, Maye has delivered key plays that have helped New England reach the AFC Championship Game.
With a trip to the Super Bowl now on the line, Maye’s teammates continue to express confidence in the young quarterback despite some recent mistakes.
“Our quarterback continues to show up, especially in those moments where things can go left or right,” wide receiver Stefon Diggs said. “He’s making the right reads. He’s making the right throws. He’s rolling with the punches.
“Playoff ball — it’s not going to be pretty. I’ll take an ugly win any day.”
Maye has fumbled six times and lost three over the Patriots’ first two postseason games. Nonetheless, he has shown a short memory, bouncing back to make pivotal plays — such as fourth quarter touchdown passes to Hunter Henry against the Chargers and Kayshon Boutte versus the Texans — in order to secure a pair of wins.
“I think none of his plays are really bad plays. It’s just part of football. I watch him, and his demeanor and his temperament throughout the game, it never changes. I think he’s consistent,” Diggs said. “The more people that band behind him, you see it. Once he gets rolling, he’s real scary. He’s a young quarterback but he has had a maturation process second to none in my opinion.”
As Maye and the Patriots now prepare for a Denver Broncos defense that led the league in sacks, ball security will be a major point of emphasis. That focus extends beyond Maye, as well, as the quarterback has not always been the primary cause of the fumbles.
“We have to be able to not get careless with the football. We can’t be reckless,” head coach Mike Vrabel said. “A lot of it is operation. We had two turnovers where we all weren’t on the same page. Not only is that a negative play if you don’t have everybody on the same page, but even worse, you lose the football or if you don’t have somebody on the same page and they blitz, somebody gets hurt. Those are the things we talk about when we’re not on the same page. I think that the operation is going to be critical.”
Category: General Sports