Drake Maye’s second outing with three turnovers led to a New England Patriots’ loss at the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. We take a closer look in this week’s All-22 Review.
Welcome back to the All-22 Review.
In this week’s edition of our previous Patriots Roundtable Podcast segment, we take a closer look at the stuff that got the New England Patriots’ beat against the Jacksonville Jaguars — namely, Drake Maye’s second game in three weeks to start the 2026 regular season that featured three turnovers. Maye’s two interceptions and a glimpse of triumph amidst constant turbulence are our subjects today.
Here’s a detailed breakdown of each play:
Maye’s First Interception
Game Situation: NE 3, JAX 14; 1:02 - 2nd; 3rd & Goal at JAX 2
Maye’s first interception rendered the New England offense scoreless to cap-off a 10-play, 70-yard drive that extended inside the Jacksonville 2-yard-line. It was the first-half of the Patriots’ “two-for-one” opportunity at the end of the first half and beginning of the second half — New England exited that stretch without putting any points on the scoreboard after kicker Andy Borregales missed his 38-yard field goal attempt at the beginning of the third quarter.
On this play, Patriots’ offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels attempted to set-up a play-action boot to Maye’s right with runs on first and second-down that forced the Jaguars to burn timeouts with the game clock ticking under two minutes. On third-and-goal, Maye pulled the ball himself and looked to target a crossing Efton Chism III along the back-line of the end zone. Jacksonville was prepared for the fake, and blanketed Chism and the rest of New England’s pass-catching options with tight man-to-man coverage.
Rather than throwing the ball away or trying to tuck it himself, Maye forced his read to Chism and paid the price. Athletic cornerback Travis Hunter turned and shielded the receiver from the ball, coming down with his first career interception and stalling the Patriots’ most efficient offensive possession of the game.
Maye’s Second Interception
Game Situation: NE 3, JAX 21; 1:03 - 3rd; 1st & 10 at NE 27
Maye’s second interception near the end of the third quarter all-but sealed victory for the Jaguars.
Jacksonville had just marched 15-plays, 72-yards on a touchdown drive to take a 21-3 lead, and the turnover was the first play of New England’s ensuing drive. Cornerback Jarrian Jones locked-up wide receiver Kyle Williams — who attempted to run a double-move on a hitch just past the first-down marker — on the sideline, and Maye’s second forced read on this list resulted in his second interception.
Jones undercut the throw and returned his pick down to the Patriots’ 5-yard-line. Running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. scored a rushing touchdown up-the-gut on the very next play, extending the Jaguars’ lead to 28-3 and capping off an 18-second stretch of game time that saw them score two touchdowns.
A New Hope
Game Situation: NE 3, JAX 14; 3:33 - 2nd; 2nd & 9 at NE 29
There were small glimmers of hope amidst a slew of unforced errors against Jacksonville. None may have been brighter than Maye’s lone connection (on five targets) with wide receiver DeMario Douglas in the second quarter.
The Jaguars matched the Patriots’ 3x1 set with Cover 6 and played the Cover 2 Cloud portion of the split-field shell to the wide side of the field, where New England aligned their bunch. Douglas ran a vertical route up the left sideline and settled down over the top of the corner and underneath the safety, giving Maye a “hole shot” read that was a staple of his game in 2025.
Maye looked to hesitate at the base of his drop for a half-second, but let it rip downfield to Douglas and the duo connected on one of five explosive plays the Patriots’ offense generated on the day. The third-year quarterback’s struggles against Cover 6 have been well-chronicled, but at least on this play, he came out on top.
Looking Ahead
Through three weeks of the regular season, Maye leads the NFL with seven giveaways. On the heels of two difficult outings, his 14-of-25 (56.0%), 199-yard, no touchdown, two-interception, one fumble lost showing that featured a passer rating of 48.6 and an EPA-per-dropback of -0.53 may have been the worst game of the 24-year-old’s young career.
Through the chaos, there are still glimpses of the former MVP-runner-up caliber player that took the league by storm last fall. He’ll need to put his recent transgressions in the past quickly, as New England gets set for an AFC East clash at the Buffalo Bills up next.
How do you think Maye and the Patriots will bounce back from a crushing defeat against the Jaguars? Drop your thoughts in the comments below and join the conversation on Patriots Roundtable.
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