Drake Maye is regressing, and the Patriots are experiencing a Super Bowl hangover.
If the New England Patriots’ surprising run to Super Bowl LX feels like a lifetime ago, imagine how it feels to those inside that locker room.
Just three games into the 2026 campaign, the Patriots are 1-2 and coming off three “unacceptable” weeks of performances, according to New England quarterback Drake Maye. In Sunday’s 35-6 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, a matchup of AFC playoff hopefuls, Maye was his own worst enemy. The third-year quarterback threw a pair of interceptions, lost a bizarre fumble, and looked nothing like the quarterback that played his way into the MVP conversation a season ago.
Maye’s first interception came on the final snap of what was a 10-play drive, with New England facing a 3rd-and-goal situation inside the Jacksonville 5-yard line. With the Patriots trailing 14-3 late in the first half, and set to receive the second-half kickoff, a field goal to close out this drive would not be the worst result.
Instead, Maye forced a throw under pressure that was intercepted by Travis Hunter, the first of his career:
The throw — and decision — called to mind Maye’s comments after New England’s season-opening loss to the Seattle Seahawks, where the young quarterback talked about how he was “impatient” in the second half against Seattle, as New England let an early lead slip away thanks to three interceptions from the Patriots quarterback. That impatience was evident on this throw and decision, as Maye tried to do too much on a single snap, rather than settle for the field goal and keep his team within striking distance at halftime.
This is the NFL version of finding, and fighting, the quicksand.
Things got worse for him in the third quarter:
This is a straight out route to the short side of the field, and the defender is all over the route from Kyle Williams. Complicating matters is the fact that Maye leaves the throw to the inside, giving Jarrian Jones a clear path to the football for Maye’s second interception of the afternoon.
Maye’s impatience is boiling over at this point, and the numbers speak for themselves. Through three games this season the third-year quarterback has thrown six interceptions, matching a franchise mark set by Drew Bledsoe during the 1994 season:
He has just one touchdown pass this year, which came in the first half against the Seahawks in Week 1.
Complicating matters is what has resulted from those turnovers. Against the Jaguars on Sunday, the first interception led to a long field goal try before halftime, which was missed by Jacksonville kicker Cam Little. But on the very next play after Maye’s second interception, the Jaguars punched the ball into the end zone to take what felt like an insurmountable 28-3 lead.
On this day, 28-3 was insurmountable.
And when you look back at Week 1, Maye’s first two interceptions on that night led directly to Seattle points as the Seahawks stormed back. Seattle scored a touchdown on the drive after Maye’s first interception, and the Seahawks took a 13-10 lead on a field goal after the second interception.
Maye’s third and final interception of that night, coming in the end zone, ended any chance of New England pulling out the comeback.
Speaking with the media after the loss, Maye put the onus on himself, and called the performance from the offense over the first three weeks “unacceptable:”
What, exactly, is going wrong with Maye and the New England offense? Andrew Callahan, who provided the above clip, took a deep dive into Maye and the passing game recently, highlighting some struggles with Cover 6 coverages that teams are showing him in the secondary:
But while the second interception Sunday against Jacksonville may have come against Cover 6 — it is hard to tell for certain without the All-22 angle — the problems have gone beyond a specific coverage at this point, as Callahan himself said from the press box on Sunday:
And that comparison to Trevor Lawrence may emphasize the overall point: Maye is pressing. He is trying to do too much on each throw, rather than taking what the defense gives him, or throwing the football away and settling for living on another down.
He is impatient, and that kills you when you are fighting quicksand in the pocket.
The concern goes all the way to the head coach:
If there is some solace for Patriots fans, that 1994 New England team referenced above, that saw Bledsoe throw three interceptions over the first three games of the season, also started 1-2.
But that team rebounded to finish 10-6 and secure a playoff spot, that started with winning in Weeks 4 and 5 to improve to 3-2 on the young season.
Can this New England team do something similar?
They visit Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills next week.
Maye will need to avoid the quicksand, and fast, to make something like that possible.