NFL Facing Punishment Decision on Drake Maye Incident

Maye was involved in a contentious incident in Sunday’s win. This came late in the second quarter after took a hard hit from Jets linebacker Jermaine Johnson. Maye’s pass to Stefon Diggs at third-and-6 was incomplete, but the Patriots got bailed out by a penalty.

Johnson went in hard on Maye, who immediately went down after the hit. From the opposite direction, the Pats QB was also tackled by DT Jowon Briggs. It was Johnson’s hit, however, that was deemed excessive by the game officials, resulting in a roughing the passer call on the New York LB. It resulted in a 15-yard penalty and an automatic first down for New England.  

Maye would go on to lead the Patriots to a touchdown on the same drive, finding tight end Hunter Henry for a 13-yard TD with 37 seconds left in the half.

Johnson will now need to wait for the league’s decision on his personal foul. According to Rule 12 Section 2 Article 11 of the NFL rulebook, “any physical acts against a player who is in a passing posture (i.e. before, during, or after attempting a pass) which, in the game official’s judgment, are unwarranted by the circumstances of the play will be called as fouls.”

A roughing the passer penalty carries a potential fine of $17,389 for a first offense and $23,186 for a second. Jones has not received any fine this season, but he was already docked $10,927 for a roughing the passer infraction back in 2023.

The NFL will announce its decision on this incident and all other incidents from Week 17 in the gameday accountability report on Saturday.

Maye and the Patriots have one game left in the regular season. They will face the Miami Dolphins in Week 18, while the Jets close out their campaign against Josh Allen and the Bills on Sunday.