Those worried about a potential Week 6 letdown for the New England Patriots had to be pleased with Sunday’s start in New Orleans.
Fresh off an emotional, monster second half against the Buffalo Bills, quarterback Drake Maye and the Patriots’ offense greeted the one-win Saints with 22 points in the first half at Caesars Superdome.
New England wound up needing every one of those points in what ended up being a much tighter affair than Patriots fans bargained for. The Patriots grinded out a 25-19 win, their third in a row, to improve to 4-2.
Even better? New England's most impactful player on Sunday had been a forgotten man over the first month-plus of the season.
New England Patriots WR DeMario Douglas picked the perfect time for his 2025 breakout game
Demario Douglas, where have you been all our lives?
The sudden disappearance of the Patriots’ most productive receiver from the past two seasons was an awkward storyline through five games. Most expected the shifty slot receiver to be utilized heavily in Josh McDaniels’ scheme, but Douglas entered the Saints game averaging just 22.8 snaps per game, per Pro Football Focus, with a painfully inefficient seven receptions on 16 targets for 30 yards and a touchdown overall on the year.
Douglas’ role didn’t change against the Saints — but his impact sure did.
The Patriots finished their opening drive of the game in style, with Maye finding Douglas deep over the middle for a 53-yard touchdown bomb. They actually connected on another one — this time catching the Saints deep from 61 yards — but the play was negated by a late, phantom offensive pass interference penalty on Stefon Diggs.
Douglas wound up playing just 16 snaps, per PFF's in-game tracking, which falls in line with his previous two games. He was New England’s second-leading receiver behind Kayshon Boutte, though, finishing with three catches for 71 yards and a touchdown; the officials ended up robbing him of what should have been the first 100-yard receiving game of his career.
One could argue that DeMario Douglas should have concluded the first quarter with 114 yards and two touchdowns.
— Andrew Guindon (@NestPgs) October 12, 2025
The good vibes are flowing with the Patriots right now, and this is another great example. Douglas easily could have packed it in, as his role in the offense has declined heavily with Diggs getting more usage in the slot. The third-year pro has not only kept fighting — he was PFF’s highest graded run blocker for the Patriots on Sunday.
Douglas has always been an easy player to root for, and no Patriots player was more deserving of a breakout game than he was this week.