The New England Patriots' offense was undoubtedly weak in their Week 1 matchup against the Raiders. The run game was certainly the biggest culprit, but Drake Maye's unsteady performance wasn't something to be overly excited about either.
As a whole, Maye's stats looked respectable: 30/46, 287 yards, a touchdown and an interception, then tack on another 11 yards as a rusher. Looking closer, though, he missed a lot of throws.
The most notable miss came on a 1st & 10 in the third quarter on a pass targeted for Hunter Henry. Maye sailed the ball, and the Patriots went three and out on the possession. Earlier in the game, he missed Pop Douglas on an out route and forced Kayshon Boutte to make some catches that were more difficult than they should have been.
As a whole, it was a shaky but overall pretty average performance from Maye, and more of what we saw last year. As a whole, a C seems a fair grade for his performance: far from elite, but servicable with a competent run game.
Bleacher Report rips into Drake Maye's Week 1 performance
Contrary to my belief that he was average, Bleacher Report's Brent Sobleski graded Maye out to a D+. Sobleski states, "The version of Drake Maye everyone hoped to see this fall didn't show up in Week 1". That's probably true: with the team's improvements and offseason hype, it seemed like Maye's rise would be imminent, but we haven't seen such an ascension yet.
Considering the lack of a run game, I'd argue that Maye's performance wasn't what the team needed to win. Additionally, I'd argue that with the anemic run game the team had as a whole, very few quarterbacks could have pulled off a win.
Admittedly, one would hope 2024's third overall pick would have the qualities required to be one of those quarterbacks, but he likely just needs more time. Remember, Sunday was the UNC alum's eleventh game he has started and finished in the NFL.
While a D+ may seem a bit harsh, there's no doubt Maye will need to continue to develop as a quarterback before we can begin calling him a star.