Drake Maye could break ugly streak by Patriots quarterbacks in NFL debut

The Patriots' third overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft is finally making his debut on Sunday, as the team is set to take on the Texans at Gillette Stadium in their Week 6 matchup. It was an unexpected but unsurprising development, given how poorly the offense has performed through five games so far.

But there was a strong belief that Jacoby Brissett would remain the starter longer than just the first month of the season.

Despite all the concerns about throwing a rookie to some of the best pass rushers in the league, there is a lot of excitement surrounding his official debut. We got a glimpse of what that would look like when he stepped in for Brissett in the last four minutes of the Patriots' first matchup with the Jets last month, and now we will see how the rookie will fare for a full 60 minutes.

Jerod Mayo's decision to bench Brissett was surely difficult, given how well-liked and respected the quarterback is on and off the field. However, with the team allegedly nearing some toxicity in the locker room due to the lack of good performance from the offense, the head coach had almost no choice but to make it.

Fortunately, the days leading up to Sunday's matchup have been good so far, with Maye's teammates rallying behind him and a more optimistic vibe overwhelming the atmosphere.

Fans have also expressed that feeling over the past week, and it could get even better if Maye can put together an impressive performance against a very good Texans team. In fact, he has a chance to finally end an ugly streak by Patriots quarterbacks over the last four years as soon as this game.

Drake Maye could solidify the start of the Maye era in New England by ending this bad streak

It's no secret that quarterbacks in New England have struggled in the years since Tom Brady left and put on far too many unforgivable performances. Although Mac Jones looked like he would be the right guy for the job his rookie season, his production quickly declined over the next two seasons, which led to his benching last year and his trade this past offseason.

Because of the lack of quality quarterback play, the Patriots have lacked a signal-caller who can throw for more than 300 yards in a single game for far too long. At this point, Jones is the last quarterback to do so against the Eagles in Week 1 of the 2023 season, creating a significant opportunity for Maye on Sunday.

It might be expecting a lot from a rookie in his first start, and maybe it's a bit unfair to even mention the possibility of it happening this week. But Maye has an impressive arm and has already shown to work well with the wide receivers, especially fellow rookie Ja'Lynn Polk.

There's a good chance he could accomplish this against the Texans, even if they do have a stellar defense and won't make it easy.

The good thing is that if it doesn't happen in Week 6, it seems like only a matter of time before he will eclipse 300 yards and begin doing that on a weekly basis. It's part of the reason why the new regime decided to use their first-round pick on Maye, and that's just another exciting aspect of the new era set to officially begin in Foxboro this weekend.

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