After a close win against the Buffalo Bills in Week 4, the New England Patriots carried the momentum into Week 5, crushing the Las Vegas Raiders 45-17. Last week saw Drake Maye win AFC Offensive Player of the Week, and he followed it up with an even better game against the Raiders. Maye finished the day 26/34 for 374 passing yards and threw four touchdowns. He added 25 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown.
It was an awful start to the season for Maye, but these past two weeks have seen him look like the quarterback who led the Patriots to the Super Bowl last season. Things weren't looking good for New England entering Week 4, but now, the Patriots' season is back on track.
Drake Maye helps save the Patriots' season
Expectations were high for the Patriots after making it to the Super Bowl last season and adding A. J. Brown in the offseason. The season start wasn't great for the Patriots, with Brown suffering an ankle injury in the opener, which sent him to injured reserve (though he may be back soon). We saw things get back on track slightly in Week 2, but the following week was ugly.
Week 3 was a beatdown that saw the Patriots look completely outmatched by the Jacksonville Jaguars. After that game, it looked like New England would be lucky to make the playoffs. These past two games have seen the Patriots' season take a 180, and Maye is a huge reason for it.
Maye's play these past two games has easily been his two best games this season. His stats through these two games show Maye throwing for 643 yards and seven touchdowns, while adding 79 rushing yards and a touchdown. The key in these past two games has been Maye limiting his turnovers, with only two.
Both of those occurred against the Bills, with Maye fumbling once and throwing one interception (that was more on Romeo Doubs not catching the ball than the third-year quarterback throwing a bad pass). Turnovers have been the story when discussing Maye's play, with his ability to take care of the ball going back to last season's playoffs being poor.
Now at 3-2, the Patriots' season looks a lot different than it did a couple of weeks ago, with them having a chance to be in first place in the AFC East after Week 5 if the Bills lose Monday Night against the Los Angeles Rams. After the season looked lost, the Patriots are now are back in playoff contention. As good as things look for New England, they need to keep the momentum rolling in Week 6, when they host a division rival, the New York Jets.
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