FOXBOROUGH — The game came down to one drive. One play. That’s what the Patriots needed to seal a win Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons.
Either the Patriots would guarantee capturing six straight victories, or potentially have a hiccup.
With 1:53 left to play, clinging to a one-point lead, it was Drake Maye’s time.
The Patriots defense had forced the Falcons to punt. And Raheim Morris still had two timeouts in the holster.
It was a make-or-break series for the second-year quarterback.
Much like last week’s game against the Cleveland Browns, nothing was easy. Maye was constantly under pressure. He was sacked six times.
Unlike the Browns, who had game-wrecker Myles Garrett (5 sacks) making Maye’s life miserable, the Falcons took turns with Jalon Walker, LaCale London and Brandon Dorlus bringing the Patriots quarterback down twice each.
Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich loves to blitz. He sent extra rushers at every turn, so Maye was once again running for his life.
That led to mistakes. There was a sack-fumble that led to a Falcons touchdown right before the half, getting Atlanta back in the game.
The Patriots were at midfield, looking to put another nail in the Falcons coffin. Instead, Maye didn’t protect the ball, got strip-sacked and it was a ballgame.
Then, in the third quarter, Maye threw a pick that led to more points.
So the Patriots needed him to deliver in the final minutes of the game.
Maye & Co. could have ended the game earlier, with the ball with 4:40 to play, holding that one-point lead thanks to Parker Romo missing the extra point.
But they went three-and-out, with the Patriots quarterback failing to connect on two straight passes after a four-yard gain by TreVeyon Henderson.
Would he deliver this time? Moreover, given how the game was playing out, did anyone trust or expect Maye to seal the deal?
It speaks volumes that he did.
Maye knows he can play better (19-for-29, 259 yards, 2 TDs, 1 pick). He knows he has to protect the ball better, slide more (2 fumbles, 1 lost), and stop making mistakes in general.
But he also wants the ball in those situations. And his teammates don’t want anyone else leading the huddle with the game on the line.
On that pivotal third-down play, Maye took the shotgun snap and hit Hunter Henry with a 17-yard pass for a first down.
Game over. Victory formation.
The Patriots escaped with a 24-23 win to make it six straight wins, and improve to 7-2, remaining atop the AFC East.
“Chin up, chest out. That stuff happens. Receivers aren’t perfect, we aren’t always open doing the right stuff,” Stefon Diggs said when asked about Maye’s efforts. “But to be able to go out there and wheel to a win, I’ll take that any day, and I’m riding with Drake Maye.”
So is Garrett Bradbury.
“Whatever it takes, Drake knows he can do it all. So we’ll put the ball in his hands whenever we can,” The Patriots center said when asked about that game-clinching completion. “So that was huge. We’ll ride with him every day.”
During the Falcons’ final timeout before the third-down play, there wasn’t much discussion between Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels about the 3rd-and-5, whether to call another run, or have Maye throw the ball.
Vrabel just had the following message for his quarterback: “Go win the game. Go get the first down and win it.”
Heading into the game, Maye had been on such an incredible roll, displaying such an elite level of play, especially during the past five games.
There were still signs of that against the Falcons during the first half. Maye had the long ball going with DeMario Douglas the primary target.
Douglas notched his first 100-yard game, and Maye ripped off his eighth straight game with a 100-plus passer rating, which is a franchise record.
The mistakes could have proved fatal, but they didn’t. After the third-quarter pick, Vrabel made a point of huddling with his quarterback and keeping Maye’s head up.
“He’s great at coming up to me after really every drive. He comes over and says something to me, always positive, always wanting me to rally the guys around me, always challenging me to battle adversity and get the guys going,” Maye said when asked about the exchange. “I just appreciate the way he coaches me. He’s hard on me, but he’s very positive, and he wants the best out of me.”
The confidence from the head coach, that pat on the back, was just what Maye needed for later in the game.
Vrabel had a suspicion, with the Falcons creeping back into the game, then closing within a touchdown after that pick resulted in a field, that the game was going to come down a final drive. He knew slamming Maye for the two turnovers wasn’t the way to go.
“I told our offense that we were going to need one drive to win the football game,” Vrabel said. “At some point in time, I think there were seven minutes left, I said, ‘I don’t know if it’s going to be a two-minute drive or it’s going to be a five-minute drive, but we’re going to need one more drive from you, and that’s all that’s going to matter.”'
Vrabel had it pegged. There was one drive. Then, one crucial play.
And his quarterback was money. In the big picture, that’s what mattered.
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