Drake Maye, the guy who was almost an MVP last year, is straight up struggling for the New England Patriots this season. We’re talking a ridiculously high turnover rate and a team that just can’t get the ball moving through the early portion of the season. It’s a shocking start for a player who looked unstoppable in 2025, and Patriots fans have to be wondering what the heck is going on.
The Zone Defense That’s Crushing Maye’s Game
So what the heck happened? ESPN’s Mike Reiss dropped an eye-opening statistic that might be the smoking gun. Last season, Maye faced zone coverage on 51% of his dropbacks. This year? That number has skyrocketed to 65%! And get this: Cover 2, the scheme with those two deep safeties designed to take away the long ball, jumped from 19% last year to a whopping 32% this season. It totally makes sense, right? Maye was slinging it deep with ridiculously high efficiency against less zone in 2025. Defenses saw that and said, “Nope, not anymore.” The issue for him is his play against zone coverage is worse than against man. Those big deep shots he lived on last year? Gone. Taken away. It’s not about who’s catching the ball, it’s about how the defense is playing him. Travis Hunter even snagged an interception as the Jaguars crushed the Patriots.
Confidence Shaken, a Snowball Effect?
Now, it’s never just one thing in the NFL. Maye’s confidence seemingly is gone, and his supporting cast isn’t as good as it was in 2025. There’s even a lingering shoulder issue from last year that could be playing a role. But that change in defensive approach? That 65% zone rate? It feels like the beginning of a total snowball effect for Maye’s struggles in 2026. He’s nowhere near the quarterback he was just a year ago. This is a stunning drop-off, and you can bet that increase in zone coverage and decrease in man coverage is a massive piece of the puzzle.
The early NFL season is always wild, and seeing a player like Maye fall so hard is definitely a story. You’ve got teams like the Jaguars crushing the Patriots, and hey, even our own Seattle Seahawks got stunned by Marcus Mariota and the Commanders, who escaped an 0-3 start. This league is nuts! What’s next for Maye and the Patriots? Can they adjust back? Will defenses keep this up? It’s going to be wild to watch unfold.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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