Drake Maye Mike Vrabel
Getty
New England Patriots QB Drake Maye with head coach Mike Vrabel
The New England Patriots got their biggest win of the season after beating Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills on Sunday Night Football, 23-20.
Starting quarterback Drake Maye was held to zero touchdown passes, but had his second-highest passing yard game this season with 273 yards for the Patriots.
Maye was able to lead the Patriots downfield in the fourth quarter of the game, allowing Pats’ kicker Andy Borregales to hit the game-winning field goal and giving Maye his first career game-winning drive.
The win against Buffalo puts the Patriots second in the AFC East divisional standings, with the team currently in a playoff spot.
One NFL writer believes Maye will lead the organization to the playoffs for the first time since the 2021-22 season.
Drake Maye Helps Pats Return To Playoffs
Drake Maye
GettyNew England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye.
Drake Maye has the fifth-most passing yards in the league with 1,261 and is currently on track to have over 4,000 passing yards in his first season as the undisputed starter in Foxborough.
FanSided’s Wynston Wilcox predicts that Maye will lead the Patriots back to the playoffs this season.
“This might not be the overreaction you think it is because if you watched the game-winning drive by Drake Maye on Sunday night, you saw a player that is turning into one of the future faces of the league,” Wilcox wrote for FanSided. The Buffalo Bills have been terrorizing AFC East teams for years and even when Miami was relevant, it still wasn’t a real threat to the Bills’ dominance in the division. That felt like it changed Sunday night.”
It’s also proof that the Patriots are a much better team than they have been. Stefon Diggs torched his former team to the tune of 146 yards. The Patriots defense, led by Christian Gonzalez, held one of the top offenses to a season-low 20 points. This wasn’t just a big win for New England, but it is a heads up to the rest of the NFL they’re a legit playoff contender.
Maye continues to get comfortable with new offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels’ offensive scheme and could expect better performances once truly comfortable on the field.
Head Coach On His Quarterback
Mike Vrabel protests a call.
GettyPatriots head coach Mike Vrabel
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel was impressed by what he saw in the second-year quarterback after having a good outing against the Super Bowl contenders.
“He’s continuing to grow and gain confidence, and show us, show everybody, show his team and himself the ability to operate in the pocket,” Vrabel said after the victory, via NBC Sports.
After the win on SNF, Maye has begun to receive nods of him being the franchise quarterback for the Patriots and received comparisons to seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Tom Brady to be the face of the organization.
The Patriots will attempt to get their first winning streak of the Vrabel era when they face off against the New Orleans Saints in Week 6.