Notes, musings, and observations from the New England Patriots’ 41-21 loss to the Houston Texans
The Drake Maye Era has officially begun, and I’m here for it.
This is probably the best I’ve ever felt on the heels of a blowout Patriots loss. Tons of positives to take away from yesterday’s Texans game, and enough negatives to keep us all in check. We’re also in a weird spot where the defense and offense both kind of share the blame for the loss, which I also kind of like. So let’s get to it.
1. I should start these Fan Notes by confessing that I really thought that the Patriots were going to win yesterday. Not because they’re a better team than Houston or because Drake Maye represents some kind of second coming that completely turns the season around or anything like that; you just see teams galvanized sometimes on the heels of a coaching or QB change, and I thought New England was going to steal one at home.
2. I also thought the Texans might get caught overlooking a crappy Patriots team or still be a little hung over from the Bills game. But none of that happened and the Patriots got spanked.
3. And I’m 100 percent OK with that. Actually, I’m feeling pretty good this morning.
4. Sure, the defense can’t seem to stop the run in any capacity anymore. And it’s not like Bentley and Barmore back in the lineup would magically prevent them from giving up 150+ on the ground week in and week out. And sure, there were some mental errors and boneheaded plays from a team that just isn’t good enough to play anything but mistake-free football. But the Patriots had more touchdown passes yesterday than all of the other games combined, and most importantly, I watched a rookie quarterback get better with each offensive snap he took. And that’s a massive, massive win.
5. Was Maye perfect? Far from it. But what I saw out of Maye yesterday were a few bad throws on the correct reads. His first interception was a badly overthrown pass intended for an open Pop Douglas coming across the middle, whom he should have hit in stride. But that was the right read on the play. A few other passes sailed high or out of reach, but they were the throws he was supposed to make. I’ll take good read, bad throw over bad reed, good throw any day.
6. And after several seasons of watching Patriots quarterbacks just kind of huck one up there and hope for the best, I can’t begin to tell you how refreshing it is to understand what a QB was looking to do when he made the throw, even if it was a lousy one.
7. And that goes double for the fact that, in order to make those throws, he had to receive the ball from a big fat guy named Ben who joined the team three days before and was making his first-ever NFL start.
8. I’ve said in a previous Fan Notes that I’m done knocking the offensive line, and I’m going to stick by that. Mainly because we’re into mid-October and I still have no clue who any of those guys are, and I firmly believe that you don’t make fun of people you don’t know.
9. And the line is going to improve over the coming seasons, of that we have no doubt. So it’s now a matter of seeing who makes the positive plays and who doesn’t. And of all the positive plays we saw yesterday – and there was a decent number – they all came from players in New England’s long-term plans. Perhaps none more enjoyable than both Drake Maye’s and Kayshon Boutte’s first career touchdowns. Boutte wasn’t schemed open on a rub route or shallow crosser; he jab-stepped at the line to get to the outside, got a step on the DB, and Maye hit him perfectly in stride for the 40-yard score, which was more like a 50-yard pass when you factor in Maye’s dropback. Plus, if you watch that play, Maye had Douglas coming open over the middle for what was a much easier, higher-percentage completion. But he looked off the safety just long enough and made a beautiful throw.
10. But my favorite play of the game came with about three minutes left in the third quarter, where Maye hit Douglas on a shallow slant over the middle for 17 yard gain. Maye was pissed at himself because the throw was a little off and Douglas had to reach back to get it. If Maye leads him on that one, he’s probably still running right now. That’s just a timing and chemistry issue that will come. But Maye immediately recognized his error, and he still made the right read and throw.
11. Overall, 20 of 33 for 243 yards, three TDs, and two picks (one on that bad overthrow, and one on that wild batted pass that inexplicably came down in the worst possible place) represents a pretty solid day. And like I already said, you could actually see him getting better with each drive.
12. The biggest knock on Drake Maye? I hate to say it, but the kid just has an inexplicably punchable face. He looks like the kind of guy who spends the entire cookout hovering over the grill and telling you when you need to flip the burgers. All reports have him as an incredibly nice kid, an amazing teammate, and Pop Douglas is already on record saying that he would run through a wall for him, so this isn’t any kind of affront to his demeanor, work ethic, or abilities as a teammate. It’s just that as someone who also has an extremely punchable face, game recognizes game.
13. How the hell Ja’Lynn Polk can make some of the best catches you’ll ever see when he’s on his way out of bounds while letting some absolute gimmes bounce right off his hands is anybody’s guess. But it’s clearly a problem, and one he needs to fix ASAP. Otherwise I might find myself once again self-deluding into thinking that it’s finally Tyquan Thornton’s time to show what he’s made of.
14. I’m hoping that yesterday’s game represented the beginnings of AVP reaching under his mattress and pulling out all the nasty plays he doesn’t want his mom to find. Plays that the offense under Brissett just wasn’t capable of executing. I’ve seen an alarming lack of effective screens, slants, quick-outs, and option routes that seemingly would be a staple of any team with offensive line problems. Until yesterday, I could have attributed that to opposing defenses not needing to give any Patriots receivers the respect of a cushion, but Boutte and Douglas have both shown the ability to beat press man, so that might change. And Maye is mobile enough to move the rapidly collapsing pocket, so that’s one thing to keep a close eye on going forward.
15. After watching Christian Gonzalez erase all of the best receivers in football since coming into the league, I have to admit that Stefon Diggs got the better of him yesterday. Diggs is just one of those players that, for whatever reason, always has a field day against the Patriots.
16. The refs certainly didn’t cost the Patriots the game. Far from it. But a bogus DPI call led to a touchdown. A flagrant facemask got missed on a one-yard loss and Maye threw a pick on the next play. There was a Texan defender in the backfield before the ball was snapped twice and no offsides was called either time. If the league takes nothing else away from the 2024 season as a whole, I hope they seriously examine how horrible the on-field product is as a result of constant, unnecessary, flow-killing, momentum-altering, erroneous flags that are polluting every single game.
17. The highlight of my day yesterday was looking over my shoulder after vocally celebrating a nice play by Marte Mapu only to see my wife giggling over the way I pronounced his last name. Other than the fact that I can never order a PuPu Platter when she and I go out for Chinese food, it’s safe to say I married the right woman.
18. Just remind me to never speak to her about the legendary career of Albert Pujols.
19. This was a fun game to watch, because we got to witness tangible, positive improvement in real time. Each offensive possession saw Maye settle a bit more, become a little more comfortable, and take a little more command of the offense. Young players made good plays. Obviously you want your team to win, but based on the overall vibe of the season, if the team can just keep doing what they did yesterday, I think we’ll be in really good shape for 2025 and beyond.
The NFL really exercised great foresight giving us Patriots/Jaguars in London at 9:30 AM. That’s the kind of game that will really help this sport expand globally.