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Drake Maye Says His Shoulder Isn't Why the Patriots' Offense Ranks Last

New England's attack ranks last in the league in scoring, and the quarterback says the fix starts between his ears, not his throwing shoulder.

By Hub Sports Report ·
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Listen up. You don't rank last in the NFL in points per game by accident. The Patriots are averaging 9.7 points a contest, worst mark in football, and that's not a margin-of-error issue — that's a structural one, same as a team that can't win a draw in its own end.

Drake Maye addressed the obvious question on Wednesday: no, the shoulder isn't the issue. Maye said the physical state of his right shoulder hasn't limited his throwing, and he pointed instead at needing to make better decisions as New England sits 1-2 to open the year, per ESPN. Good on him for not hiding behind an excuse. But "better decisions" is coach-speak for cleaning up turnovers of opportunity, and until that shows up on the scoreboard, it's just words on a whiteboard.

Blocking for Him Isn't Getting Easier

The offensive line took a hit this week. New England placed guard Greg Van Roten on injured reserve with a thigh injury, per ESPN — one more body off a group that was already thin in front of Maye. You can't ask a young quarterback to make sharper reads while the protection in front of him keeps changing. That's not an excuse for 9.7 points a game. It's context.

Injury Report Ahead of Buffalo

Christian Gonzalez didn't practice Wednesday as the Patriots get ready for Josh Allen and the Bills, per ESPN's Mike Reiss. No word yet on whether that's a planned rest day or something more serious, but losing a key piece against a quarterback like Allen is the kind of thing that keeps a coach up at night.

Whiteboard Take

None of this is about talent. It's about details — protection, decisions, health. Fix those and the scoring follows. Keep ignoring them and 1-2 turns into something worse in a hurry. Fundamentals first. Always.

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