The Patriots' offense is poor, but Drake Maye is showing he can improve it

Patriots

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You know things aren't going well when a head coach appears in front of a global audience and says his soccer team is soft.

That's exactly what Jerod Mayo said about his football team on Sunday after their 32-16 loss to the Jaguars, and based on a few of his players, he's exactly right.

But despite the fact that the Patriots were on a six-game losing streak and have lost their last two games by a mean of 18 points, an encouraging pattern emerged at one point in the sport.

Rookie quarterback Drake Maye is showing early signs of improving his unit by distributing the ball.

Maye has five touchdown passes, essentially the most ever by a Patriots quarterback in his first two starts. based on Patriots PR.

All five of his touchdown passes went to a different receiver.

Second-year receivers DeMario Douglas and Kayshon Boutte had never caught a touchdown pass before fidgeting with Maye. They each have one now. Hunter Henry had been one in all Brissett's favorite targets, but after a pass from Maye, he crossed the tip zone for the primary time this season. KJ Osborn and JaMychal Hasty contributed to the general standings on Sunday.

And that's not even mentioning that Maye's mobility and decisiveness allow him to increase plays and save the offensive line every so often.

The Patriots' offense has been terrible for years and one player isn't enough to repair the issue. That's why the power to nurture others is such a crucial trait for Maye as he assumes the role of franchise quarterback. It's nothing recent for Maye either.

His highschool coach, Scott Chadwick, told a story in regards to the lengths Maye went to make certain his teammates were included during a tournament Video posted to the Patriots' X account.

“Extremely coachable. He listens. He wants to get better and is very smart. “Drake’s junior year we were very good,” Chadwick said. “We averaged 50 points a game this year and Drake came over at halftime and looked at the stats. My middle son was our stats guy, and I said something to him like, “What’s Drake doing?”

“He said, 'Dad, he doesn't look at his stats,'” Chadwick added. “He wants to see how many balls each player caught in the first half. And then he came to me and suggested plays where the guys who hadn't caught a lot of balls could get some balls. He was always focused on making sure everyone was happy.”

Making everyone completely satisfied is an unrealistic expectation. There are 53 players in a football squad and quite a lot of different egos and personalities.

But this struggling Patriots team could use as much help as possible, and Maye is wise to get as many individuals involved as possible. On Sunday, he accomplished passes to nine different receivers.

“He’s got that swag,” Douglas said earlier this week. “He came to the huddle and said 'let's go' and I said 'let's go', I'm ready with you.” I’d run through a wall for him. Team player. My boy Drake, we have now his back.”

Brian Thomas Jr. torched the Patriots' secondary

Jacksonville receiver Brian Thomas Jr. caught the Jaguars' only touchdown pass of the sport, a six-yard pass that left him wide open.

The coverage of his biggest catch of the day was significantly better. Christian Gonzalez was stride for stride with Thomas, but Trevor Lawrence put the 58-yard ball right where it needed to be and Thomas was capable of focus and produce it down.

He also scored a two-point conversion following Parker Washington's 96-yard punt return. No other Jaguar had greater than 35 receiving yards. It was just Thomas' day. He caught all five of his targets.

Identity crisis

For the second straight yr, Maye was the Patriots' leading rusher. He tied Rhamondre Stevenson for the team lead with 18 yards. The Patriots had 38 total rushing yards.

Earlier this season, Mayo said the Patriots weren't a flowery football team and that running the ball was a key a part of their offensive identity.

After a powerful start in Cincinnati within the opening game, the Patriots' running game has declined to the purpose of being virtually non-existent during the last two weeks. Since the loss to the Dolphins on October 6, no Patriots running back has had greater than 20 yards.