Drake Maye outplays Josh Allen a week after his dreadful game vs. Texans

Despite their unimpressive season so far, the Patriots' Week 6 matchup with the Texans was very exciting for one simple reason: the debut of rookie quarterback Drake Maye. The quarterback change came just days after their avoidable loss to the Dolphins last Sunday, with many believing it might not be a great idea to throw Maye out on the field against one of the best pass rushes in the entire league.

It wasn't just because of their elite defensive line but also because of the Patriots' inconsistent offensive line protection, which continued to record some of the highest pressure rates across the first month of the season. That, coupled with a guy like Will Anderson Jr. lined up on the other side, seemed like a disaster waiting to happen.

On top of that, one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL right now, Josh Allen, recorded the worst game of his career just one week ago against that Texans team, leaving little hope for Maye to have a decent outing.

Surprisingly, the rookie had a tremendous first game and actually outperformed the AFC East foe, blowing him out of the water in his debut.

Drake Maye and the Patriots might have lost, but the rookie outplayed Josh Allen vs. Texans

There are a lot of good things that can be taken away from the Patriots loss to the Texans on Sunday, much more than was initially believed there would be, and one of those is how well Maye played despite everything working against him.

Perhaps the worst of all was the offensive line's inconsistent protection, which led to four sacks for a loss of 34 yards, which inevitably meant there was virtually no run game, which was already a concern before the game even started with Rhamondre Stevenson sidelined this week.

Regardless, Maye made some big-time throws and brought life to the offense that had been lacking. Fans were quick to show just how impressive the rookie played by comparing his performance to that of Allen's from Week 5, a game the Bills signal caller would like to forget.

Considering how often Maye was compared to Allen during the draft process earlier this year, it's fitting that he proved he can hang with the pros by playing better than his newfound rival.

That makes his performance stand out for many reasons, not just because he's a rookie or was better than Allen but also because of how well he could play in less-than-favorable circumstances. If he had his starting running back, even just one better wide receiver, and a reliable offensive line, imagine what he could do.

The future looks bright in New England, which is the best part you can take away from this loss.

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