Patriots' Drake Maye Earns Gritty Praise Win vs. Ravens

With the Patriots offensive line forced to rotate tackles for much of the night due to injury, Maye was under pressure for much of the night. In fact, he was pressured on 45.8 percent of his drop-backs in the first half. Maye’s only interception, as well as a second-quarter strip-sack in scoring territory were both caused by pressure. On a key third-down in the closing moments of the third quarter, the Pats starter once again fell victim to the blitz, which came through unblocked. Maye was then pressured into a throw-away and was slow to get up after the play. 

Still, the Patriots second-year starter lost neither his confidence, nor his poise. Maye sparked the Pats’ comeback efforts by throwing a 37-yard scoring strike to rookie receiver Kyle Williams, as well as a two-point conversion pass to running back Rhamondre Stevenson to cut Baltimore’s lead to three points. New England’s ensuing drive saw the Pats take a four-point lead on a 21-yard touchdown run from Stevenson. Still, it was Maye’s 33-yard completion to veteran receiver Stefon Diggs which set the Pats on the path to success.

In fact, his ability to rise from a shaky first half drew a chorus of “MVP” chants ringing throughout the chilly Inner Harbor air surrounding M&T Bank Stadium. Yet, Maye chose to credit the team’s “complete effort” above all else when speaking with reporters after the game.

“So proud of this team, man … it took everybody,” Maye said. “That’s what we knew coming into it. Our goal this week was ‘win together.’ And man, this was together. It felt good getting that one, and just props to these guys. Keep fighting. We got guys going down, guys coming in, taking more plays than they’ve probably ever had…There’s some things I’d like to have back, but right now it just feels good to get a win.”

With the win, New England not only punched its ticket to the postseason, but also re-established itself as a serious contender to represent the AFC in Super Bowl LX. Nonetheless, Vrabel knows that Maye’s clutch performance in Week 16 helped to provide a valuable teaching moment for his young team.

“I think that it was good to be in a game like this where we battled, and it was tied, and we got down, momentum kind of shifted the other way, and our guys battled back,” Vrabel said. “We got stops…We lost a lot of guys, a lot of the guys went down, a lot of guys stepped up, and we’re gonna have to get healthy. But I think this was a great win for us.”