Will Patriots change playing style of Drake Maye after concussion?

Earlier this week, New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo acknowledged that rookie quarterback Drake Maye "has to protect himself a little better" after Maye entered the NFL's concussion protocol during the club's 25-22 win over the New York Jets this past Sunday. 

Offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt spoke with reporters on Thursday and addressed whether the Patriots could look to alter Maye's playing style in an attempt to keep the 22-year-old healthy. 

"You would hate to take (running) away from a player," Van Pelt explained, as shared by Keagan Stiefel of NESN. "It’s a strength of his, being able to move out of the pocket. But the one thing we talked about was being safe with the slide. You know, oftentimes you get into space, and you feel like you’re clean, you go feet first. It’s what we coach in open space, but you never know what’s coming from behind."

Maye was removed from the Jets game shortly after he took a hit as he completed a feet-first slide at the end of a scramble late in the contest's first quarter. Before his injury, the third overall pick of this year's draft gained 114 yards with a touchdown on 13 rushing attempts this season. 

"I’ve been in systems where you have quarterback runs and they’ve led to injury, season-ending injury," Van Pelt added during his comments, per Karen Guregian of MassLive. "So I know the value of that position. In high-leverage situations, fourth-and-one, game-on-the-line, maybe, but he’s going to make enough plays outside the pocket in normal drop-back, play-action where he scrambles. Again, ultimately, it’s that balance of protecting your quarterback. I have to protect him as well as he has to protect himself."

The Indianapolis Colts faced a similar dilemma regarding second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson this past offseason after injuries limited him to just four starts as a rookie. Richardson suffered a new injury earlier this fall and has since been benched.

Also on Thursday, Chris Mason of MassLive noted that Maye could clear the concussion protocol in time to play in this Sunday's game between the 2-6 Patriots and 1-6 Tennessee Titans. It will be interesting to see if head coach Jerod Mayo and Van Pelt try to limit how often Maye makes plays with his legs, assuming the first-year pro is good to go for the matchup at Nissan Stadium.