Scarnecchia explains why Patriots need to play Drake Maye this season

Scarnecchia explains why Patriots need to play Drake Maye this season originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The New England Patriots’ biggest issue through three games is the play of their offensive line.

Few are more aware of that fact than Patriots Hall of Famer and legendary assistant coach Dante Scarnecchia, who coached the Patriots’ offensive line for more than two decades and has been watching from afar since retiring in 2020.

But even though poor offensive line play runs the risk of ruining a young quarterback (see: Mac Jones in 2022 and 2023), Scarnecchia believes New England needs to hand rookie Drake Maye the reins at some point this season.

Scarnacchia joined Tom E. Curran on a new episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast to explain why the Patriots were wise to make Jacoby Brissett the early-season starter but would be wiser to give Maye significant reps later in the 2024 campaign.

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“I think it’s the appropriate approach. I also think at some point in the season, Drake Maye is going to be out there. I just do,” Scarnecchia told Curran. “Because you’re going want to go through this year and say, ‘Yep, we got the guy we want,’ and then take all your resources and throw them into making a lot of other things better.

“How are you going to know that? You’re going to have to find out at some point. And I don’t know if there’s a plan for this, obviously, because I don’t go over there, but I would suspect that at some point (Maye will) be out there. … I think everyone will get their wishes and those that want Drake out there — ultimately, I think it’ll happen.”

Maye saw his first NFL action in garbage time of the Patriots’ blowout loss to the New York Jets last Thursday, completing 4 of 8 passes for 22 yards. It was a bit of a chaotic debut for the No. 3 overall pick, who absorbed two sacks and five QB hits under constant duress from the Jets’ front.

Whenever Maye makes his first start — Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer reports the Patriots do plan to play him this season — Scarnecchia hopes to see a smoother operation that of course can be aided by better protection from the offensive line.

“I just hope that when he gets out there, it doesn’t look like recess,” Scarnecchia said. “You know what recess looks like on the playground? Everybody go deep. I just hope it looks like a guy that gets out there, gets them in the huddle, calls the plays (and) gets them to the line.

“The hardest 10 seconds or less in football is the quarterback standing on the line and looking at what he’s supposed to be looking at. ‘OK, I think it’s going to be this,’ and then the ball gets snapped. Now he’s got to validate it. It’s that, or ‘Oh my God, it’s not that.’ It’s fast.

“That’s why (playing quarterback) is so hard. It’s not easy — it’s the hardest thing to do in all of sports. … Like, Tom (Brady) didn’t have the answers to everything in his first year.”

The Patriots should be patient with Maye’s development and avoid throwing him to the wolves. But to Scarnecchia’s point, he’ll need to prove what he’s made of eventually.

“When is a guy’s time? I don’t know. I hope when it comes, he’s ready to play as he possibly can be, and we all see the things that gave everyone the hope that we all had when they when they drafted him,” Scarnecchia said of Maye.

Also in the episode:

• Is Jacoby Brissett too cautious with where to throw the ball or is it a result of the offensive scheme?

• Would Jayden Daniels be playing right now if he was on the Patriots?

• Which QB will be in a better position in three years? Daniels or Drake Maye?

• Dante Scarnecchia breaks down what went wrong for the Patriots against the Jets and what the No. 1 priority is when trying to address the issues with the offensive line.