Three games in, the New England Patriots have their share of problem areas, with ball security dominating the commentary in Foxboro ahead of Sunday’s home game with the Carolina Panthers.
The Patriots now lead the NFL in lost fumbles after giving away four of them in last week’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. They rank in a tie for 31st in total giveaways (6) and are tied for 27th in turnover differential (-3).
The silver lining? When the Patriots actually have the ball, they’ve actually been efficient under the influence of offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
New England’s 1-2 start is a real punch in the gut, because the advanced stats and analytics paint the picture of a team that deserves better (or can’t get out of its own way). Per Team Rankings, the Patriots are inside or near the NFL’s top 10 in yards per play (5.4, tied for 11th), first downs per game (20.7, tied for 8th), average time of possession (32:23, 7th), and third down conversion percentage (43.59%, tied for 9th).
If not for the team literally sabotaging itself with turnovers in losses to both the Raiders and Steelers, the Patriots would be on the right side of .500 — or better.
Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is finding his groove, and QB Drake Maye is reaping the benefits
Patriots fans know the deal when it comes to McDaniels. Few quarterbacks (or wide receivers) have found success in his offense since Tom Brady departed for Tampa Bay ahead of the 2020 season.
With that said, new franchise quarterback Drake Maye has shown signs of being the outlier. Per team reporter Evan Lazar, advanced analytics paint Maye in a positive light, despite his own critical turnovers in both of the Patriots’ losses this season. He ranks top 10 among all NFL QBs in EPA (expected points added) per drop-back, seventh in drop-back success rate, and fifth in completion percentage over expectation.
The key, to Lazar, has been a two-game heater from McDaniels, who has schemed up some easy completions for Maye while getting the athletic QB’s legs involved with boot legs, play action and rollouts.
Glass-half-full take on the #Patriots O film: McDaniels was in his bag again. Great balance, motion/window dressing, unique formations, good mix of boots/PA, created easy completions.
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) September 22, 2025
You can nitpick the goal-line sequence to end the 1H, but this was good stuff.
The proof is in the pudding, and should remind Patriots fans of their successful offenses of the past, when Brady's No. 1 receiver was the open one. New Englads' top receiver last week against the Steelers was tight end Hunter Henry. In Week 2 against the Miami Dolphins, it was running back Rhamondre Stevenson. In the season opener with the Raiders, it was wide receiver Kayshon Boutte.
There’s no way opposing defenses know what’s coming each week — because McDaniels himself doesn’t know who the leading receiver will be on game day. That's by design. His offense has and always will be dictated on the quarterback running the show, from setting the protection up front, to getting in the right play and distributing the ball to the optimal player.
Maye’s still a work in progress in that department, but he’s clearly building momentum. When asked about getting his wide receiver group more involved in the game plan this week, McDaniels reiterated to reporters that the offense isn’t designed to funnel the ball to a particular player. It always comes back to the quarterback, and in that respect, the target distribution and high efficiency through three weeks are clear signs of progress.
“I literally focus on the process of what we’re trying to do,” McDaniels said. “If we’re passing the ball efficiently, then I’m not overly concerned about one person or another. I’d love for all of them to have six catches, 85 yards and two touchdowns, you know? It’s just unrealistic. … I’d like our young quarterback to continue to distribute the ball to the person that it’s supposed to go to. We involve all of our players in the game plan; every one of them practices really hard. I think they’re unselfish. I think that they know that the ball may come to them and it may not. Hopefully, I think, the goal for all of us is that we hope that the quarterback is throwing it to the person that’s supposed to get it.”
The Patriots are a 1-2 football team right now for two main reasons: too many ill-timed turnovers from Maye and the offense (especially in the red zone), and no Christian Gonzalez on defense. There’s a chance the team solves both of those problems this week against the Panthers, and that could set the runway for some better results in the month of October.