Technically speaking, Drake Maye already has his first NFL win. By starting Week 8's game against the Jets, Maye – whose day ended early after being forced to sit out following a hit to the head – was the winning QB on record, despite backup Jacoby Brissett playing most of the game (and throwing three times as many passes).
It was an anticlimactic first win for the rookie, and Maye's status for Week 9's game against the Titans has been the biggest question in Foxboro ever since.
Things didn't look great for Maye's chances when the Patriots announced that Brissett would be the QB taking the podium for this week's media availability – starting QBs typically talk on Wednesday – but Jerod Mayo did leave the door open for Maye's return. Basically, don't make those Sunday afternoon plans just yet.
MUST-READ: Haason Reddick embarrasses himself by calling out Bill Belichick after Jets loss
Drake Maye reportedly has 'a chance' to start for Patriots against Titans in Week 9
#Patriots coach Jerod Mayo tells reporters that QB Drake Maye, who is in the NFL's concussion protocol, will be a limited participant in practice today.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 30, 2024
That means he, at least, has a chance to play Sunday.
If we're going to try and translate Mayo's coach speak here, 'limited' probably means Mayo's chances are still hovering under 50%. But given the nature of concussions, even a 50% chance of playing a week later is great news. On Monday, Mayo admitted that the team was surprised to learn that Maye even got a concussion in the first place.
"I did not (know)," he told reporters. "I was surprised when (Jim) Whalen told me he needed to go the medical tent. He threw a couple of good balls afterward. I thought he was still pretty sharp in those regards. Obviously, it’s above my pay grade as far as pulling him out of the game and putting him in the protocol.”
The league has independent arbiters in charge of both diagnosing concussions and clearing players to return from them, which means that once Maye was diagnosed with one, neither he nor the Patriots had any control of his timeline.
He'll have to past the NFL's 5-step process before he can return. Before leaving the Jets game, Maye was starting to look more comfortable as the Pats starting QB, throwing for over 500 yards and five touchdowns in his first two starts.