Patriots star quarterback Drake Maye would like a do-over of Super Bowl LX.
He won’t get that opportunity, though, and will have to sit with the memory of the Patriots offense and himself floundering on the biggest of stages in a 29-13 defeat to the Seahawks at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday.
Maye continued his postseason trend of struggling against elite defenses. He completed 27-of-43 passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns but he turned the ball over three times, including a fumble and two interceptions, one of which was returned 45 yards for a game-sealing touchdown by Uchenna Nwosu late in the fourth quarter.
“What would I like to have back? I’d like to go back to the beginning and redo it,” Maye told reporters. “There’s so many plays that can decide and change the game. What is it, 19-7 or 22-7, I have the fumble or whatever and they return it for a touchdown. There were numerous plays in the first half where I feel like I could have made a better throw or made a better decision. Really just comes down to who makes the plays and who doesn’t, and they made plays.”
Maye, who revealed he received a pain-killing injection in his right shoulder to help him manage the injury during the game, was under siege as the Seahawks defense exposed a shaky Patriots offensive line.
Maye was sacked three times in the first half and six times overall, finishing with a 79.1 quarterback rating. He was drilled by Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon on his second interception as Witherspoon hit Maye’s arm and the ball floated out of his hands and right to Nwosu, who had nothing but open field in front of him.
The constant pressure on Maye appeared to speed-up his decision-making and make him uncomfortable in the pocket. He never got into a rhythm as the Patriots punted on their first eight possessions of the game and then Maye got stripped-sacked by Derick Hall on New England’s ninth series.
Maye’s only real highlight came on two plays early in the fourth quarter. He dropped in a pass in tight zone coverage over the middle to Mack Hollins for a 24-yard gain and then went back to Hollins a play later by dropping in a 35-yard touchdown to give the Patriots a chance with them trailing, 19-7.
But with a shot to cut into that deficit more after the Patriots defense forced a three-and-out, Maye forced an unneeded desperation pass downfield to Kyle Williams, which was nowhere close to the rookie wideout and easily picked off by Julian Love.
“We were moving it solid in the first couple drives and just had a couple negative plays that would put us behind the chains. And then from there, just couldn’t stay ahead of the chains, and third-and-short, we couldn’t pick up the first downs,” Maye said. “They had brought some pressure where they got us a few times. Just got to be better with the football, make better decisions and I have to make better throws when the game is like that. I got to make some throws to help us move the football.”
The loss certainly stung for Maye. He fought back tears multiple times when talking with reporters, especially when speaking about head coach Mike Vrabel and his teammates.
“Man, I’m so proud,” Maye said of what the Patriots accomplished this season after back-to-back 4-13 campaigns. “That’s probably the reason I’m choked up most. This team is something that I’m glad to be a part of.”
Even with the Super Bowl LX loss, Maye made a tremendous leap in his second NFL season after playing in 13 games as a rookie. Maye completed a league-best and franchise record 72% of his passes during the regular season for 4,394 yards with 31 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He also rushed for 450 yards and four more scores.
The playoffs were a lot harder on Maye, and despite wins over the Chargers, Texans and Broncos, he never had a signature postseason performance that separates the great quarterbacks from the rest of the pack.
In the playoffs, Maye’s production dipped significantly. He completed 58.3% of his passes for 825 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions. He also fumbled it seven times and was sacked 21 times in four games.
The way Maye performed in the postseason didn’t change the Patriots’ outlook on the 23-year-old signal-caller.
“Drake’s the face of this franchise. He’s the leader of this team. He’s a warrior,” Patriots center Garrett Bradbury said. “I think this whole locker room knows that, so I’m proud as heck to be his teammate.”
The question now facing Maye: what’s next? It’s something it looks like he’s already thinking about.
And he has plans on how he’s going to use coming up short in the Super Bowl.
“I think that’s the biggest thing about life, you’re going to have times like this. It’s how you bounce back,” Maye said. “I think all those guys in that locker room are going to use this as fuel. I’d go to war with those guys anytime, any day, anywhere. It’s motivation to get back here, and not have this feeling and have what they’re feeling out there.”