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Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff Writer
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Rookie Drake Maye is taking over as the New England Patriots‘ starting quarterback, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Maye, the third overall pick in the 2024 draft, replaces nine-year veteran Jacoby Brissett as the Patriots (1-4) prepare to host the Houston Texans on Sunday.
The Patriots have lost four games in a row after beating the Cincinnati Bengals 16-10 in the season opener. First-year head coach Jerod Mayo said last week that the way the team played in its lone victory was “unsustainable” because of the low scoring output; the Patriots are now averaging 12.4 points per game.
Brissett admirably handled adversity, and mostly avoided critical mistakes, to help keep the Patriots competitive despite averaging nearly 10 hits taken per game. That included playing behind five different starting offensive line combinations and throwing to a wide receiver corps that ranks last in the NFL in catches (39) and receiving yards (342).
But in recent weeks, Mayo seemed to be weighing how much of the offensive struggles were attributable to quarterback play versus the instability around the quarterback — while also factoring in Maye’s development behind the scenes.
Brissett is 79-of-135 for 696 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception. The one interception came in a Week 4 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, with linebacker Fred Warner returning it 45 yards for a touchdown.
Then in Sunday’s 15-10 home loss to the Miami Dolphins, Brissett didn’t reach 100 yards passing until the fourth quarter.
Asked to assess Brissett’s performance in the game, Mayo said on Monday, “It just wasn’t good enough. I thought we played well enough defensively and on special teams to win. As the quarterback, he understands this, he touches the ball on every single play, and we didn’t score enough points to win the game.”
Maye will now join Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix as the fourth rookie quarterback to start a game this season.