Drake Maye finds 2025 form in road win over Bills

No real surprises here. Benford was listed as questionable heading into the day, but he didn’t practice at all this week so he was never likely to play. Rookie Davison Igbinosun is likely to step into his spot opposite Maxwell Hairston, which makes the Bills young and inexperienced on the boundary. Perhaps Drake Maye could finally take advantage of that on the way to his first truly good fantasy game of the season.

We are happy to see that the Patriots’ quarterback is practicing fully, but this is a new injury for Maye. He notably dealt with a throwing shoulder injury during the Patriots’ playoff run last season. His listing raises questions as to whether there might be a lingering issue. We expect a follow-up report on this in the coming days.

Maye, after another meltdown in Week 3 against the Jaguars, has now posted a negative drop back EPA in six dtraight outings dating back to last season. Against Jacksonville on Sunday he posted a meager 40 percent drop back success rate, the fifth lowest of the week. “What’s fallen apart with Maye looks like it’s between the ears as much as anything physical,” Graff said. “He looks like a quarterback whose confidence is shot.” Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel said this week that Maye needs to calm down if things are going to turn around. “We need to stop trying to choke the life out of every single play,” Vrabel said during his Monday radio appearance. “We need to relax.” Maye through Week 3 ranks 32nd in fantasy points per drop back, below the likes of Daniel Jones and Cam Ward. It will be tough to start Maye in Week 4 against Buffalo if there are other viable QB options on the waiver wire.

He fumbled twice, losing one to the Jags defense. Maye was under duress and missing routine throws for most of this game. He also had a long touchdown throw and a rushing touchdown called back on penalties. Without A.J. Brown (ankle) in the lineup the Patriots have no one to threaten secondaries, allowing opposing defenses to stack the box, shut down the run game, and leave the Pats a one-dimensional offense. Though Maye’s rushing could keep him afloat as a top-12 quarterback in Week 4 against the Bills, he should be considered a shaky option for now. New England’s offensive line might be able to hold up against a Buffalo front seven that has struggled to pressure the passer.

It was a defensive slugfest for the Patriots and Steelers in Week 2, with neither team passing for a touchdown on the day. Maye added 17 rushing yards on four carries but took three sacks, including one in the red zone in the second quarter. His interception was a floater in Steelers territory in the third quarter, tossed right to Patrick Queen to end a drive. He ends the day with 44-percent of his passing yards coming on two third-quarter chunk plays to Romeo Doubs. Maye has had a rough start to the season, following up a three-interception Week 1 with a scoreless, one-interception Week 2. He faces another solid defense in the Jaguars for Week 3; Maye’s rushing upside keeps him in the low-end QB1 territory for next week.

Maye once again struggled with Seattle’s ironclad defense, routinely making poor decisions when attempting to push the ball downfield. His third, and worst, interception of the night came when he lobbed a pass off his back foot at Mack Hollins with under 30 seconds left. The throw fell well short of his target and Josh Jobe made a toe-tapping pick in the end zone. Maye only threw multiple interceptions once last year, including the postseason. That came in his Super Bowl loss to the Seahawks. His multi-pick total is already at one this year, again at the hands of Seattle. It’s a long season, but Maye did nothing to silence the “schedule merchant” claims tonight. He will look to rebound as a mid-range QB1 versus the Steelers next week. That could be without A.J. Brown, who left this game with an ankle injury and did not return.

PFF charts the Patriots’ use of tempo at just 2.4 percent last season, tying for dead last in the NFL. The league average was 6.27 percent and the Saints led the league at 19.2 percent. The Patriots averaged 64.6 offensive plays per game, just 0.28 above average. Playing faster leads to more plays, and more plays lead to more opportunities to score fantasy points. Hopefully, McDaniels’ preseason play-calling confirms his intended offensive change is being implemented.

Maye and Brown have already begun generating highlight plays together against Patriots defenders. Coaches and players from both sides of the ball are highly complimentary of the new receiver, and Brown has taken on a leadership role within the offense. It sounds like things are coming together for Brown and the Patriots. Treat him as a WR2 with upside.

Reiss spoke with TE Hunter Henry and former Patriots QB Brian Hoyer about how McDaniels’ scheme “demands a lot” from the quarterback position. As simple as it sounds, learning the “what” under McDaniels can happen quickly. Learning the “why” takes time. Hoyer notes that reports on Maye’s development last spring and summer were hardly glowing, but the young quarterback made strides in-season and defenses had a harder time fooling him with “different looks, fronts and blitzes” as the season progressed. Patriots newcomers, FB Reggie Gilliam and WR Romeo Doubs, are reportedly impressed with Maye’s mastery of the offense as well. Maye was the MVP runner-up last year, completing 72 percent of his passes and finishing as the overall QB2 in total fantasy points.

It’s a Super Bowl rematch for the two teams, who will get the new league year started on Wednesday, September 9th on NBC, the preferred broadcasting network for football watchers. Sam Darnold and the Seahawks will look to get the season started on a strong note against the Patriots and Drake Maye, who looked wildly out-matched the last time these two teams met. It’s one of two games the Seahawks will play on NBC this season, as they will also take on the Chiefs in Week 7 on Sunday Night Football.