When the Patriots made the inevitable decision to make rookie quarterback Drake Maye the starter in Week 6, many felt it was a pivotal turning point in the season that could yield better results than how the team fared under Jacoby Brissett.
At first, that was a fair assessment given how impressive Maye looked even against tough competition like the Texans in his NFL debut, but it didn't take long to realize the offense around him was holding him back from his true potential. That has only become more apparent as the season has continued.
The offensive line's struggles have plagued significant progress almost every week, whether it be bad protection of Maye, racking up pre-snap penalties, or making it impossible for the run game to gain any traction.
That was the case again in Glendale this past Sunday, on top of questionable play-calling (again) by Alex Van Pelt, and it appears the frustration of it all might finally be getting to Maye.
Drake Maye's growing frustration is not something the Patriots need
For the most part, Maye has been saying anything but blaming his teammates or the coaching staff for what has gone on this year despite their faults holding him back.
He did, however, finally reveal his frustrations after the Patriots' latest loss to the Cardinals, and while it's entirely warranted, it's not something the team needs right now. They should do all they can to fix it before ruining a good thing with their quarterback, which has been a consistent fear by New England fans this whole season.
“Frustrating. The same things keep showing up, that’s probably the most frustrating part. I think we are hurting ourselves, getting in long distances first and second down, and then not capitalizing when we get down in the red zone and the goal line. ...
Those things just keep showing up over and over. We were addressing them and the guys, I feel, like were focusing on them during the week and in practice. We are practicing well, I feel like. It’s just not translating to the game, so we have to do something extra or do something different. It’s just frustrating because we’re in these games and I think we can win these games but the ball’s not rolling our way.”
Maye echoes much of what fans and reporters have been saying as the losses pile up. It's even more frustrating to see the same mistakes happening at this point in the year and after a bye week, which should have been a good thing for a team in their position.
Besides the consistent lack of discipline on display every week, there seems to be a lack of urgency until the game is too far out of their hands, which we saw again against the Cardinals, and the coaching staff seemingly hoping Maye will pull them out of a deep hole all by himself. That says a lot about how they view the offense and the high expectations of the quarterback, which is far from fair.
They're fortunate that Maye is a rookie and can't necessarily demand a trade or work his way out of New England because other quarterbacks in his position would likely try to do that.