Some Patriots news and notes for this morning:
1) Monday was another tough day for New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, who was inconsistent as the club tried to focus in on another red area day ahead of their upcoming trip to Minnesota.
Head coach Mike Vrabel set up various scenarios on Monday, including putting the offense in a two-minute situation, and there, unfortunately, were some frustrating moments. Part of that was caused by the fact that Vrabel also created a loud environment, with music blaring from the speakers down near the goal line, simulating what they’ll potentially be facing against the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Given that they’re going to be on the road for the first time, that move made sense, but his guys apparently struggled. Players had a tough time getting whatever the audible Maye called, unable to hear due to how loud it was. That led to multiple mistakes, including the offense losing track of the play clock at one point.
That reportedly left Vrabel fuming.
For Maye, it was the second-straight practice where he’s had some rough moments.
“I think just this mastering and getting a feel for and practicing,” said Maye on his progress at this point of the preseason on The Afternoon Show on WEEI. “It’s our first full drive, two-minute drill today. It didn’t go the way we wanted. So little things like that. I felt like in the base run game, base pass game, I feel good with our concepts and what we do.”
“So just continuing to fine-tune the situational plays, situational situations, two-minute, third down, different fronts on third down. So that stuff is kind of what comes and what we’re going to study throughout the week.”
Overall, the practice was seemingly structured like a regular-season practice, with the page now turning to Vrabel getting the guys their first taste of how they’ll be handling themselves with the regular season opener now just weeks away.
While the offense did have some moments, it had a rough finish as the final play ended with a drop by Stefon Diggs, capping off a fitting finish to an otherwise frustrating session.
The club is set to travel today, coming off two practice days on Sunday and Monday. Tomorrow kicks off two straight practices with the Vikings on Wednesday and Thursday, with an off day on Friday. That sets up a rare Saturday afternoon game at 1:00 pm.
2) Maye’s struggles in practice the last two days have come on the heels of Friday night’s performance, where he also had a turnover that continues to be talked about.
Vrabel elaborated on it again during an appearance on The Greg Hill Show on WEEI Monday, saying that moments like that are ones that he needs to learn from to keep from putting the team in a difficult position. Friday night, they lucked out and Washington missed the field goal on the ensuing drive coming off the turnover. However, by the time the regular season gets here, they may not be as fortunate.
“I think it’s clear how I communicate,” said Vrabel when asked about what the communication was like with Maye about that play. “I tell them what I’m thinking and what needs to be said. But I think it starts with, obviously, the things that go on before that. What is happening pre-snap? What’s the situation? Confirming coverage post-snap and then making the right read with the football. ”
“And those things, you don’t see that in practice, right? So you look at the preseason practices and even against Washington, if it could, ‘Well, maybe that was a sack or we’re scrambling, we extend outside the pocket.’ And now there’s no… The stove isn’t hot. You don’t have to touch it. And I think in the game, we’re able to see those things. And that’s why we have preseason games, and we get those actions and understand that when you say, ‘Hey, I’m just trying to make a play,’ sometimes we can’t try to make plays because they become bad ones.”
“And so I think he’ll learn from it and understand, ‘Okay, I’m not going to be able to play Superman all the time, and I can reserve the right to punt and help this football team, and we’ll flip the field and play defense and get another crack at it.’”
3) For Maye, the demands from Vrabel seem to have been pretty strong both on and off the field. Vrabel has pushed Maye to be a little more vocal when it comes to establishing himself as a leader on this team. The head coach was spotted during the Forged in Foxborough mini-series pushing Maye to be assertive with the guys, and being there to celebrate whenever they cross the goal line.
Vrabel was also asked about trying to help the 22-year-old grow into that role during his interview, and the former linebacker said it’s pretty simple. It’s a long season, and there will be times where a performance might not be great, but regardless of how things might go, that side of Maye will need to be there in order to help the team weather whatever adversity they might face.
“Well, I mean, the expectations that he’s leading this football team, that’s what the job of the head coach and the quarterback is,” said Vrabel. “That’s pretty much how this thing goes. And that can’t take days off. I mean, sometimes the performance isn’t going to be extraordinary, but the leadership and the demeanor have to be.”
“And I think he’s learning that. I love the fact that he’s willing to learn and push and try to do those things to where he’s demanding of everybody and making sure that everybody’s on the same page.”
Maye admitted that he needs to bring the same intensity every day and hopefully lift his guys up if they need it.
“Yeah, I think he hit it off the tee,” said Maye. “Just bring it every day. No days off. When the team or the offense feels like you’re kind of lagging around, it’s my job to bring him up.”
4) With former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady seeing his statue unveiled on Friday night, Maye was asked about whether or not he felt any pressure knowing that he’s stepping into a role once held by Brady in New England.
Maye brushed that off, saying that he’s not worried about that, but he does focus on how Brady handled himself as a player, with the hope that he can apply some of those things to his own game.
“Yeah, I wouldn’t say pressure,” said Maye. “I think it’s just appreciation for what he did, what he did here, how he played the position, how he loved to win and wanted to win, and how they did win. I think that’s the biggest part.”
“I think, definitely, just try to watch an old tape of him with some of the same concepts of how he did things, is pretty cool to watch. But for that, I wouldn’t say pressure. I was drafted maybe five years after he left here. So, I don’t think I would say really any pressure.”
For Maye, it’s probably safe to say the pressure he’s facing right now is simply to not repeat the mistakes from the guy who previously wore his number. As fans likely remember, former Patriots QB Mac Jones developed a habit of becoming turnover-prone in his second season, and it led to a long year in 2022 and then an even longer one in 2023. That season derailed things to the point where former head coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft opted to part ways, and Jones’ tenure also ultimately came to an end.
That’s an area where history definitely can’t repeat itself, and Maye admitted that what he tried to do Friday night is something he needs to be better at moving forward.
“I think it’s definitely got to balance when to extend plays and try to make plays with my feet or make plays on the run,” said Maye. “But at the end of the day, ball security and protecting the football is the number one thing.”
Odds and Ends
Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson was missing from practice for the second-straight day, with no real reports as to what might be ailing him. Also popping up on the injury list were DJ James, who had a terrific interception Friday night, along with Marcus Bryant and Marte Mapu. … Carlton Davis returned to practice, with the veteran now seemingly starting to ramp up after missing time during the early part of preseason. … The issues at center with Garrett Bradbury continued, with he and Maye fumbling another QB/center exchange Monday. He saw just 13 snaps Friday night and fortunately there were no issues, but that’s seemingly happened a surprising amount of times during practice this preseason. … Javon Baker came up with another big play Monday, snagging a bomb from Josh Dobbs that was underthrown, but Baker stopped and managed to make a nice leaping grab against Miles Battle. Baker continues to step up on special teams and is starting to shine at wideout, with the former UCF standout continuing to make a case for a spot on the roster. … Anfernee Jennings, who has dropped on the depth chart and had a quiet camp, made a couple of nice plays on Monday. He seems to face an uphill battle given where he’s at, but he did manage to have moments where he caused some pressure and also registered a would-be sack. … The kickers struggled Monday, with Andres Borregales finishing 2-of-5 on his field goal attempts, while John Parker-Romo went just 1-of-4 on his attempts. Both of those attempts are a surprise given how solid both had been, which continues to see them both essentially even at this point of training camp. … Cole Strange got more work in on Monday behind Mike Onwenu at right guard, which has been the case in recent practices. Perhaps the goal is to see if he can handle the versatility on both sides, possibly giving him an opportunity as Vrabel and the coaching staff continue trying to figure out thier depth chart. … Caedan Wallace seems to have locked in the backup spot behind rookie Jared Wilson, who has stepped into Strange’s spot at left guard and continues to hold it down after being elevated into the top spot in recent weeks.
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
