Drake Maye labelled his late implosion as “unacceptable” as the New England Patriots squandered the chance to gain revenge on the Seattle Seahawks, losing the season-opener 13-10.
The Seahawks beat the Patriots in Super Bowl LX in February but were on the ropes in the rematch, trailing 10-0 early in the third quarter and without quarterback Sam Darnold due to a hip injury.
Maye had numerous chances to seal the game but, instead, handed the initiative to Seattle by becoming the first QB to throw three interceptions and be sacked three times in the fourth quarter of a game since Jameis Winston in 2022.
“I thought we had the game under control,” said Maye, who finished 23 of 33 for 178 yards, with one touchdown.
“I thought we had a good plan to try to start chipping away and be patient. Lost patience and it cost us – decisions that cost us the game on my part, on my end. I vow to myself to be better and realise it’s a long season. But at the same time, you can’t have those. It’s unacceptable.
“That wasn’t how I play football and how I want to represent my game and playing quarterback for the Patriots.”
Late interception ends Patriots’ chances
Maye’s first two picks enabled the Seahawks to manufacture 10 points but the worst was still to come. Having manoeuvred the Patriots to the 16-yard line with 26 seconds remaining, they were in field goal range to tie the game. But Maye threw a wayward pass to receiver Mack Hollins and was picked off by Josh Jobe to effectively end the contest.
“It was something where we had a certain protection on, we were cutting [with offensive tackles], and I was trying to get rid of it,” Maye said. “I realised Mack was there in the back and didn’t put enough on it to get it out [of bounds]. It was just unacceptable. With a chance to send it to overtime at the worst, and the only thing you can do is turn the ball [for that not to happen] – that’s what I did.”
The Seahawks were relieved to emerge with the win but Darnold’s injury cast a shadow over the success.
The 29-year-old went down on the opening possession with a hip injury and will undergo an MRI on Thursday.
“At this point, we are able to rule out a fracture,” Seattle coach Mike Macdonald said. “So there’s some more tests to be done. We’re still working through all that, but right now I think fracture is out, which is great news.”
Seattle Lock down the game with Drew under center
Back-up Drew Lock stepped in and finished 16-of-22 for 187 yards and one touchdown.
“Your heart goes out to Sam,” Macdonald added. “We’re praying that it’s minor, obviously. He’s had such a great offseason, but Drew has, too. Drew’s played really well. So any time somebody is getting an opportunity, unfortunately it’s because somebody else isn’t able to go. But you also want to feel excited for that player. So we had a lot of confidence in Drew coming in and playing at a high level.”
Macdonald reserved special praise for Jobe for his match-securing catch late on.
“Really happy for Josh just playing all the way to the very last play,” he said. “That’s really remarkable. So, proud to get the win, but also understand it’s the first game and we have a really great opportunity here to take our game to the next level. We talk about the ’26 Seahawks and understanding our identity and who we are, I think that definitely revealed the type of team that we have – a resilient, tough bunch that sticks together. I’m really proud of the effort and just really proud to be a Seahawk today.”
The Patriots also suffered an injury blow with veteran receiver AJ Brown limping off on his debut early in the quarter with an ankle injury.
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