FOXBOROUGH – During a Patriots practice, Mike Vrabel encouraged Drake Maye and others to run down the field and celebrate with their teammates after a touchdown.
In this video, posted by the team, Vrabel then posed a question to his starting quarterback.
“How many touchdowns did you guys score last year?” Vrabel said. “The answer is not enough. That’s it. There’s one answer. Not enough.”
As much as Vrabel hoped things would change this fall, they remained the same in the Patriots’ 20-13 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.
During the 2024 season, the Patriots averaged 1.8 touchdowns per game, finishing with 30 touchdowns. Only the Cleveland Browns (29 touchdowns) were worse. That number was slightly up from 2023, when they scored 27 touchdowns.
In both cases, it wasn’t good enough. On Sunday, in their regular-season opener, it still wasn’t good enough.
With offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels back, Maye and the Patriots offense looked truly efficient for three drives in the first half. Despite a missed field goal, the team had a 10-7 halftime lead.
Unfortunately, that’s really as good as it got for McDaniels, Maye, and this once again struggling offense. After taking that short lead, the Patriots went three-and-out three times, and Maye had an interception in their next four drives.
So, what happened? Who’s to blame? How do we process this poor offensive effort from a franchise that hasn’t scored 30 points since Bailey Zappe did so against the Cleveland Browns in 2022?
After the game, players were cautiously optimistic and preached patience.
“Week 1, that’s our first time running (the offense), full game with the (starters). I think it’s going to come together,” DeMario Douglas said. “We have a long year, a long year. It’s our first time playing together. I think we’ve seen what we need to do on that sideline. We need more energy. I feel like we’re going to correct that and get it right.”
“It’s not a good feeling,” center Garrett Bradbury added. “We need to mature as a team. We need to grow from this, figure out why, and not let it happen again.”
A rough start
This year marks the third-straight season the Patriots are starting with a new offensive coordinator. This year, there’s more optimism with Josh McDaniels running the show with Maye under center.
In 2024, the Patriots finished 30th in the NFL, scoring 17.0 points per game. In 2023, they finished tied for last, scoring 13.9 points per contest.
On Sunday, as the game wore on, problems persisted.
Maye didn’t look completely comfortable behind the offensive line, which features all-new starters from last year. He was pressured plenty (sacked four times and hit nine times total). When his first read wasn’t there, it appeared as though he tucked the ball and ran.
The quarterback, who completed 30-of-46 passes for 287 yards, also missed some open targets on Sunday. His group was 4-of-14 on third down, converting just 28.6% of the time.
In the last six drives, the Patriots had six plays that hurt momentum – two false starts, two sacks, a pass play for negative yards, and an interception.
Afterward, players struggled to pinpoint what went wrong without watching the game over.
“We just didn’t execute some of the simple things well enough,” Hunter Henry said. “We just needed to get a couple of first downs and get things going a little bit. We weren’t able to do that, especially there in the third quarter and early in the fourth. We just put ourselves behind. We did some good things, but a lot of things we have to clean up.”
“I feel like it just comes down to execution and everybody on offense on the same page to get the job done, ultimately,” Rhamondre Stevenson added.
Is it the scheme?
With the Patriots’ offensive struggles, it’s fair to also question if the team struggled with McDaniels’ offense. Out of the Patriots’ 11 starters, four players (Henry, Stevenson, Mack Hollins, and Michael Onwenu) have experience with McDaniels’ playbook.
If players weren’t on the same page, it could be a matter of familiarity with the offensive scheme.
“It’s the NFL. A new OC came in here with a new playbook, so it’s up to us being professional to learn the playbook and know what we’re doing out there,” Stevenson said. “I don’t think that was a problem tonight. I think everybody knows what they’re doing. We just need to execute.”
Bradbury also noted that the Patriots weren’t the only ones with a new staff or playbook since they were going up against a Raiders team with a new head coach (Pete Carroll) and offensive coordinator (Chip Kelly). Players also credited coaches for how prepared they felt.
“We just spent so long preparing for this team. It’s unfortunate. You feel let down. You feel disappointed,” Bradbury said. “But it’s one game. We thankfully have 16 more. We have to make the most of those.”
“I don’t feel like there were any, ‘don’t know what you’re doing,’ it’s just we have to give credit to them,” Henry added.
Drake Maye’s outlook
As soon as Maye walked to the podium in the post-game press conference, you could see it in his face.
The young quarterback was upset. It hasn’t been easy in New England.
His 13th NFL start turned into his 10th loss as a pro. The Patriots have zero 30-point performances. Maye has been sacked four or more times in six games, while he’s only had one game with three or more touchdown passes.
The hope is that the 23-year-old will develop and reach new heights with McDaniels. His teammates say they still believe.
“Drake was good, man. He’s still building. Still coming along,” Bradbury said. “This is a new scheme, a new everything. There was a lot thrown at him this week. I feel like he handled it really well. We’ve got to make some plays for him, be in better spots for him. We’ll do that.”
On Sunday, the Patriots started four new players, including two rookies, on their offensive line. The offense featured three new receivers and one returner whose future looks bright in Kayshon Boutte (103 yards).
On a rainy Sunday, in front of a packed home stadium, potential is one thing Patriot fans cling to when it comes to their quarterback. Maye’s 287 yards are a career high. Even though he had some rough, incomplete passes, his 65.2 completion percentage is the fourth-best in his short career.
“He’s poised, man,’ Douglas said of Maye. “The weather could’ve played a part with some of the stuff. I believe in him. We believe in him. We know what he’s capable of. Just a lot of stuff didn’t go our way. But I believe in this team. It’s going to come together.”
There were glimmers on Sunday, but not enough to get the Patriots in the end zone, which, as Vrabel noted this summer, needs to happen more.
“It’s a start. Not the one that we wanted. We’ve got a long way to go,” Vrabel said on Sunday. “And we’re going to be resolved to get it fixed, and the people that are here are going to be committed to getting it fixed together.”
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