Patriots HC Mike Vrabel addresses rumored Drake Maye injury

On Tuesday, New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel offered a non-answer when asked about an injury quarterback Drake Maye may have picked up during New England's 10-7 win over the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. 

Later on Tuesday, media members had an opportunity to speak with Vrabel about Maye's status during a news conference. According to Keagan Stiefel of NESN, Vrabel was directly asked if Maye hurt his shoulder on the final Sunday of January. 

Does Drake Maye have a new shoulder injury ahead of the Super Bowl?

"No, I wouldn’t say that anyone hurt anything," Vrabel responded. "This is a sport where there’s going to be things that come up, but we’ll talk about whatever status each player has for the game once we’re required to. We understand that, but we were able to function offensively — throw the football, run the football — so that’s kind of where everyone is at."

After Maye took five sacks and passed for only 86 yards on 21 attempts against the Broncos, he acknowledged that he was dealing with "some bumps and bruises." One of those bruises may have occurred when he landed on his throwing shoulder at the end of a run during the third quarter of the contest. 

Maye also rushed for 65 yards and the Patriots' only touchdown of the AFC title game. 

How serious is the potential Drake Maye issue?

Vrabel was also asked if Maye's supposed injury has been "blown out of proportion" by certain individuals posting on social media. 

"Probably," Vrabel said. "...I think that everybody, including Drake, is not at 100% during this part of the year. We’ll do everything that we can to help our players be prepared and get ready for this game." 

It seems likely that Maye's shoulder will be mentioned on an upcoming injury report for New England's Super Bowl matchup versus the Seattle Seahawks on Feb. 8. That said, Vrabel understandably is in no hurry to reveal too much about any player at this stage of his club's Super Bowl preparations.