Patriots quarterback Drake Maye hasn’t cleared the concussion protocol yet, but it seems like there’s a good chance he’ll get the green light to play against the Titans this weekend.
Maye suffered a concussion in last Sunday’s victory over the Jets, but he progressed enough to practice with the team on a limited basis on Wednesday. Maye remained a limited participant on Thursday and Friday will bring another practice as well as any injury designations that the team chooses to apply.
Jacoby Brissett replaced Maye last week and will start if Maye does not clear the final steps of the protocol by Sunday.
Maye had plenty of company in the limited category. Cornerback Alex Austin (ankle), safety Kyle Dugger (ankle), defensive tackle Daniel Ekuale (abdomen), linebacker christian Elliss (abdomen), running back Antonio Gibson (toe), cornerback Jonathan Jones (shoulder), guard Michael Jordan (ankle), tackle Vederian Lowe (ankle, shoulder), guard Layden Robinson (ankle), defensive tackle Jaquelin Roy (neck), linebacker Sione Takitaki (knee), linebacker Jahlani Tavai (back), wide receiver Tyquan Thornton (ankle), and defensive end Keion White (knee) were also limited on Thursday.
Bright spots are in short supply when you lose 52-14, but the Titans could find one in wide receiver Calvin Ridley’s productivity against the Lions last Sunday.
Ridley’s production had not been where he or the team wanted it to be through his first six games with the team, including an eight-target, zero-catch game in Week Six. Against the Lions, though, Ridley had 10 catches for 143 yards and he said on Wednesday that he wants that to be the standard moving forward.
“It’s just about getting better,” Ridley said, via the team’s website. “I think my preparation all week — I just worked every moment I was here throughout the day. . . . I just worked, and it showed up. I should have all games like that.”
The Titans traded DeAndre Hopkins to Kansas City last week, which may have led to more being placed on Ridley’s shoulders and he showed why that might wind up as a positive for a Titans team that can use any they can find.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced the nine semifinalists for the contributor category for the Class of 2025.
K.S. “Bud” Adams, Ralph Hay, Frank “Bucko” Kilroy, Robert Kraft, Art Modell, Art Rooney Jr., Seymour Siwoff, Doug Williams and John Wooten advance to the next round of voting.
Members of the contributor blue-ribbon committee made their selections from a field of 25 in their most recent reduction vote. The committee will discuss the semifinalists at length when it meets virtually Nov. 12 to select one Finalist for the full selection committee to consider for possible election with the new class of enshrinees.
Kilroy, Kraft, Rooney and Wooten reached this point in the selection process last year when coaches and contributors were in the same category. The Hall of Fame’s Board of Directors voted earlier this year to separate the groups and send one finalist from each through to the annual selection meeting to determine the new class.
Reduction votes also are occurring in the modern-era players, seniors and coach categories. Eventually, 20 finalists will be presented at the selection committee’s annual meeting next year in advance of Super Bowl LIX.
The selectors will vote on 15 modern-era players, three seniors, one coach and one contributor.
While the Hall has no set number for any class of enshrinees, the Hall of Fame’s selection process bylaws stipulate that between four and eight new members will be selected.
There’s a chance Titans quarterback Will Levis could be back to play the Patriots this weekend.
Head coach Brian Callahan said in his Wednesday press conference that Levis will do some work on Wednesday at practice, with an eye toward seeing how he responds for the rest of the week.
Levis has missed the last two games with a shoulder injury.
“We’re going to try to get a feel for where he’s at with some rest, see how he feels throwing the ball, see how it looks,” Callahan said. “The more important part for Will right now will be not just today, but Thursday, Friday worth of days consecutively throwing — see how that goes. He feels good after the rest and some time off of throwing. So, we’ll see what it looks like as the week goes along.
“We’ll make sure that if he’s feeling good and up to it, then we’ll ramp it up and see where he’s at. We’ll test all the throws, make sure he can make them all, make sure he’s confident in it, and if he does, then we’ll move forward. But we’ll see how the week goes along.”
In five games this season, Levis has completed 66.4 percent of his throws for 699 yards with five touchdowns and seven interceptions. He’s also rushed for 106 yards on 16 carries.
Mason Rudolph has started the last two games and would be in line to start again against New England if Levis can’t play.
The Titans will issue their first injury report of the week later in the day.
As the Patriots begin their practice week, rookie quarterback Drake Maye will be on the field after being placed in concussion protocol on Sunday.
Head coach Jerod Mayo told reporters in his Wednesday press conference that Maye will be limited in the day’s session.
"[H]e will throw the ball at times in practice today. But he will be limited,” Mayo said. “There are people a lot smarter than me, as far as cleaning people with concussions, and we’ll lean on our medical professionals and also the NFL league policy as far as getting him ready to play.
“I do have confidence that if the league says he’s ready to play, that he will be able to go out there and operate. In saying that, I feel very comfortable putting Jacoby [Brissett] in there, as he is a professional and always stays ready — as you could see from the last game. So, however that plays out, we’ll see.”
Mayo added that having a veteran like Brissett “kind of puts us at ease” from the quarterback standpoint.
Maye exited Sunday’s 25-22 victory over the Jets in the second quarter, having rushed for 46 yards — including a 17-yard touchdown — and completed 3-of-6 passes for 23 yards. Brissett finished 15-of-24 for 132 yards, and hit a two-point conversion following Rhamondre Stevenson’s go-ahead, 1-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
In his four appearances with three starts, Maye has completed 63.1 percent of his throws for 564 yards with five touchdowns and two interceptions. Brissett has completed 59.1 percent of his passes this season for 828 yards with two touchdowns and one pick.
The Patriots injury report over the next few days will be telling when it comes to Maye’s availability for the Week 9 matchup with the Titans.
