The preseason finale is over. Real football is just around the corner.
The New England Patriots wrapped up their preseason slate Sunday night with a 20-10 loss to the Washington Commanders. The game, which began with Jacoby Brissett suffering a shoulder injury, saw rookie quarterback Drake Maye show out in front of a national TV audience. Maye completed 13 of 20 passes for 126 yards and a touchdown while adding three carries for 17 yards.
As encouraging as Maye’s performance was, the biggest story should be the abysmal performance of New England’s offensive line, which lost starting guard Sidy Sow to an injury. The line reached a new low and is a major cause for concern ahead of the season opener.
By the way, the Patriots were called for 15 penalties, 10 of which were accepted. A masterpiece it was not.
Let’s go over the best and worst performances from the Patriots’ preseason finale.
Best Players for Patriots in Loss to Commanders
QB Drake Maye
The rookie quarterback played great Sunday night. He was especially impressive on his first drive when he went 5-for-6 for 71 yards and threw an 18-yard touchdown to running back Kevin Harris.
Maye made plays with his feet, threw off-platform darts, and showed significant improvement while playing under center. His talent is undeniable.
Some very impressive plays by Drake Maye on that drive.
– 17-yard scramble on third-and-14
– Cross-body completion to Polk for 29 yards
– 16-yard completion to Douglas on third-and-8 pic.twitter.com/UHSLSAZmvV— Zack Cox (@zm_cox) August 26, 2024
Maye’s highlight reel and stats would’ve been even better had he not been playing behind a wretched offensive line — which we’ll get to in a minute. Sure, he was going against Washington’s backups, but Maye still deserves credit for how he played and the improvements he’s made over the last two weeks.
You can click here for our full breakdown of Maye’s performance — and the reasons why he likely won’t start Week 1.
Running Backs
We couldn’t single out one of the running backs because most played well in this game.
Antonio Gibson ran hard and showed juice as a receiver. Same for JaMycal Hasty, who boosted his roster hopes with 21 yards on the ground and 24 yards as a receiver. Harris caught Maye’s touchdown, and undrafted rookie Terrell Jennings bowled over defenders on 12- and 13-yard runs.
MORE: Simulate the NFL Season With PFN’s Playoff Predictor
The Patriots’ running game won’t go anywhere this season if the O-line struggles. But if the blocking is there, the backfield should be an above-average group.
.@DrakeMaye2 ➡️ @kevoharris1 for the games first TD!
📺: #NEvsWAS on NBC pic.twitter.com/e64LNCINUg
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) August 26, 2024
LB Christian Elliss
The veteran linebacker finished his impressive summer with a bang.
Elliss racked up 11 tackles, including one for a loss, before exiting the game in the second half due to a head injury. He was tough against the run and played with good energy.
Elliss has a good shot at making the 53-man roster as a primary special-teams player and depth linebacker.
Honorable mentions: Ja’Lynn Polk, Joe Giles-Harris, Shaun Wade, Keion White, Javon Baker
Players Who Struggled in Patriots-Commanders
Offensive Line
You saw it all from this group in the first half — and all of it stunk.
Nick Leverett (filling in for David Andrews) botched two snaps. Sow and Layden Robinson ran into each other while allowing a sack that resulted in Brissett injuring his shoulder (the injury doesn’t appear to be serious).
Sow even stepped on Maye’s foot at one point, causing the rookie QB to drop back with just one cleat.
Drake Maye loses his shoe pic.twitter.com/tN484VQHh4
— Ben Brown 🌻 (@BenBrownPL) August 26, 2024
As for penalties, the first half saw the group commit eight of them, one which wiped out a long touchdown from Maye to K.J. Osborn. Four penalties were declined, including two on a single play. It was that bad.
Along the way, the O-line allowed numerous QB pressures and stuffed runs. Worse yet: The performance game against Washington’s backup defense. Woof.
In fairness, the Chukwuma Okorafor-Sow-Leverett-Robinson-Mike Onwenu combination hasn’t played together much this summer. And things probably would’ve gone better had Andrews been playing.
Still, Patriots coaches might need to go back to the drawing board, regardless of whether Vederian Lowe returns anytime soon. Sow’s ankle injury late in the second quarter also could complicate matters, but the severity remains unclear.
WR K.J. Osborn
This probably is too harsh, but Osborn lands in this section solely due to this play:
This was a nice throw by Brissett to KJ Osborn. Why didn't Osborn try to catch it with two hands? pic.twitter.com/18kQJkoyNV
— Ben Brown 🌻 (@BenBrownPL) August 26, 2024
Whether that goes in the stat sheet as a drop is irrelevant. The reality is Osborn was signed to make that kind of play and he didn’t deliver. Rather than elevating and attacking the ball, Osborn, for some reason, made the play more difficult by trying to catch the ball with one hand.
It was representative of an underwhelming training camp for Osborn, who had some impressive practices but also struggled with drops.
Whoever Thought It Was a Good Idea To Have DeMario Douglas Returning Punts in a Preseason Game
Douglas is the Patriots’ top pass-catching threat and is a top breakout candidate. But he’s small (5-foot-8) and suffered two concussions last season. The Patriots’ offense can’t afford to lose Douglas to an injury.
Why, then, was Douglas returning punts in a meaningless preseason finale? The pros — if there were any — couldn’t have outweighed the cons.
Honorable mentions: Joe Milton III, Azizi Hearn, Marcellas Dial Jr., John Morgan