- May 21, 2026
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Though Patriots quarterback Drake Maye’s poor fourth quarter downed the Patriots in Wednesday’s season-opener against the Seahawks, head coach Mike Vrabel expressed confidence that the young signal-caller will be better going forward.
While Maye’s decision-making, timing, and accuracy may have been issues for his first two picks in the fourth quarter, his third was the most troubling given the game situation. Vrabel noted that before the fateful interception, the situation had been detailed to Maye by the coaching staff.
“If it’s there, obviously we want to try to be aggressive,” Vrabel said. “But if not, we’re not losing any yards. And certainly don’t want to give them a chance to make a play. So, that was the conversation that went in.”
“Everything in the passing game is built on timing, built on protection,” Vrabel added "And so, again, if it’s not where you want it, in the timing of that particular play, and protection — just have to throw it away and say, ‘Can’t win it on this throw.’ Drake will learn from it. We’ll all learn from it. And, hopefully, we’ll be better for it in the end.”
Vrabel noted that the Patriots have seen Maye make good decisions with the football and feel like that will continue in the future.
“[W]hen you’re the quarterback or you have the ball in your hands, those things just get magnified — those decisions and the timings and all those other things,” Vrabel said. “We’ve seen Drake perform at an extremely high level and I anticipate him continuing to do that and going that as we move forward.”
What the Patriots don’t want is for Maye to get too reckless. While Maye can make off-schedule plays, it’s important to perform things within the structure and timing of the offense.
“[T]here’s one guy with the ball and he gets to make the decisions, and we trust Drake to do that,” Vrabel said. “So I wouldn’t say that we should allow reckless play, because then it’s just scattered and guys are in different gaps and guys do whatever they want. There’s a scheme to the play and the players have to — we talk about bringing the picture to life. We’ve done that a lot and we’ll continue to do it.
“I think he knows the difference, and I think most of our players know the difference between when they can be aggressive and when they have to be smart.”
While Maye’s decision-making, timing, and accuracy may have been issues for his first two picks in the fourth quarter, his third was the most troubling given the game situation. Vrabel noted that before the fateful interception, the situation had been detailed to Maye by the coaching staff.
“If it’s there, obviously we want to try to be aggressive,” Vrabel said. “But if not, we’re not losing any yards. And certainly don’t want to give them a chance to make a play. So, that was the conversation that went in.”
“Everything in the passing game is built on timing, built on protection,” Vrabel added "And so, again, if it’s not where you want it, in the timing of that particular play, and protection — just have to throw it away and say, ‘Can’t win it on this throw.’ Drake will learn from it. We’ll all learn from it. And, hopefully, we’ll be better for it in the end.”
Vrabel noted that the Patriots have seen Maye make good decisions with the football and feel like that will continue in the future.
“[W]hen you’re the quarterback or you have the ball in your hands, those things just get magnified — those decisions and the timings and all those other things,” Vrabel said. “We’ve seen Drake perform at an extremely high level and I anticipate him continuing to do that and going that as we move forward.”
What the Patriots don’t want is for Maye to get too reckless. While Maye can make off-schedule plays, it’s important to perform things within the structure and timing of the offense.
“[T]here’s one guy with the ball and he gets to make the decisions, and we trust Drake to do that,” Vrabel said. “So I wouldn’t say that we should allow reckless play, because then it’s just scattered and guys are in different gaps and guys do whatever they want. There’s a scheme to the play and the players have to — we talk about bringing the picture to life. We’ve done that a lot and we’ll continue to do it.
“I think he knows the difference, and I think most of our players know the difference between when they can be aggressive and when they have to be smart.”