Here’s what New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye had to say following the team’s 23-20 win over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday night:
On the fact they did it, and how big of a win was this:
“Yeah, just good. Thanks to the Good Lord. Man, that was fun. That was a tough one. That’s a tough one. It took everybody in that locker room, and the guys came out and we battled. We didn’t play the best in the first half. The defense helped us out. We came back offensively and got some things going. Two-minute drive at the end. Just go down and win it. That’s what you want.
On how happy he was for Rhamondre Stevenson after he fumbled, coming back out and scoring two touchdowns:
“Yeah, shoot. That’s the story of life, of football, adversity, being able to bounce back. He was still running hard. He was running as hard as he could. You know, just going to be trusting Rhamondre for the whole season. We need him. He’s a great player, and he’s fun to watch.”
On the fact on that drive before the first half ended, he made an off=-platform throw to Diggs, and how much taht got them going heading into the second half to believe they could get the ball down the middle:
“Yeah. I mean, they played a lot of zone. They got eyes on me. Just trying to start and take completions in the first half. Felt like in the second half, we had some things open downfield, and the guys made plays. Had Diggs. He made a great catch. We should’ve scored. We got to do better in the red zone. I know that’s going to be the emphasis, score touchdowns in the red zone.”
On what he saw in the Bills’ defense that they felt they could exploit later on in the game:
“No, I think they’re great defense. They do a lot of different things. They play a lot of two-deep zone on us tonight. Disguising great. Just trying to … Part of disguising, you’re going to be out of place versus when you’re not disguising. You’re going to be more out of place. So just trying to see the coverage post-snap and let it rip.”
On what, if anything, happened to him in that time in terms of responding to pressure:
“Yeah, it wasn’t even… The first half was terrible. We had the ball. I missed a third-down throw to Stef on the back shoulder. I missed him underneath. We fumbled and down there when the defense had some turnovers, we didn’t score in the red zone. So, yeah, just tell the guys ‘Keep playing.’ We were up, what was it, 6-3? Is that what it was? Shoot, we were up 6-3 on them. One of the best teams in the league with the MVP, there’s nothing to be sad about. Just go out there and keep playing.”
On Vrabel talking about them taking the next step in a game like this:
“He always says, take the next step. This is a Division Game, it’s 8:20 pm in Orchard Park in a great environment playing the Buffalo Bills. Where else would you rather be? So, it was fun.”
On what it was like to finally deliver in the clutch and put the game away:
“Yeah. Shoot, I was just trusting the guys around me. Trust those guys. I grew up, my dad, my brother’s always said, in basketball or baseball, if it’s the last play, the last shot, I want the ball in my hands. So I’m not going to lose that mindset. I’m going to keep that mindset my whole career.”
On his thoughts on the last kick:
“Yeah, I couldn’t watch. I couldn’t watch.”
You couldn’t watch?
“Couldn’t watch. It was just trust. Just trust in him. Back in the day, he was committed to North Carolina High School, and he flipped on us. So he went to Miami. But what a kick. Pressure, ultimate pressure. Tell people all the time, other than quarterback, I think kickers got it. They’ve got a lot on the line, so it was sweet to see.”
On if he shut his eyes:
“I was just looking down the iPad of something in the run game I could have done in the last couple of plays to get another first down.
On the role his faith has played in his career so far:
“Yeah, it’s huge. Our chaplain just told me before the game, be a blessing, man. Just be a blessing. Just thank the good Lord for being out here. Keeping me healthy, keeping the guys healthy. What a position I am in my life to spread the word and know that everything I’m doing is through him and for him.”
On the fact Mike Vrabel mentioned that they started to blitz them more in the second half, and it seemed like he started to scramble a little bit more as well, and if that had anything to do with it:
“Yeah, I probably should have stayed in the pocket. They had some good pockets. I think a lot of them were… The sacks were my fault. It wasn’t like they were beat. So just got to hang in there. I think they’re diving the edges in and keeping the backers kind of spying on me. So just got to stay in the pocket and know that those guys are playing their butts off up front.”
On Stefon Diggs’ performance tonight:
“Yeah, you knew… I mean, it’s storybook. You knew. I thought he should have got in the end zone when he got caught. But coming back here, first game, primetime. You could see it all week. He just loves football. He loves the game, and he’s got a lot in the tank left, so it’s good that he’s a Patriot.”
On if he expected them to blitz you as much as they did in the second half:
“Yeah, they weren’t blitzing us barely at all in the first half, so I figured they were down, they’d make something happen. They’re going to come after us. Like I said, they do a great job of disguising and just trying to make something happen and the guys did a great job staying alive.”
On the fact he’s talked about his leadership for always being more vocal when he got some wins he’d feel like, quote, he’d “done something” and what is it he feels like he did tonight:
“What do I feel like I did tonight? I didn’t hurt the team. Protected the football, made some plays, protected the football, and gave us a chance to win. And used my teammates around me. That’s the biggest thing. We got a lot of [football] left, and we got to keep going. So thank you guys.”
(EDITOR’S NOTE: This transcript was done based on the available footage and is subject to typographical errors. If you spot anything, please let me know in the comments below.)
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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.
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