The New England Patriots say Drake Maye is fine. Maye says he feels good. But as Super Bowl 60 draws nearer, there’s a quiet tension surrounding the quarterback, the kind that doesn’t show up in quotes or highlight clips, but is impossible to fully ignore.
NFL Insider Questions if Patriots Are Being Honest About Drake Maye’s Injury
Drake Maye arrived in Santa Clara dealing with a right shoulder issue, one he and the team have repeatedly softpedaled. He’s spoken confidently about his throwing sessions and preparation, insisting the injury won’t affect him on Sunday. Still, around the league, there are questions. Not necessarily because anyone thinks the New England Patriots are lying, but because teams, especially this one, rarely tell the whole story in situations like this.
That point was made plainly by PFSN to Mike Florio during Super Bowl Radio Row. When asked about Maye’s injury and its potential impact on the game, Florio offered a familiar reminder.
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“Well, you know, they’re never going to tell us the truth about a guy’s injury, and they’re always going to say everything’s fine, and the Patriots have always been good, dating back to the Belichick days, of keeping secrets as secret as possible. Now let’s see what the injury reports are on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.”
If Maye is a full participant throughout the week, that’s a sign the shoulder isn’t a real concern. If he’s limited at any point, it raises questions about whether the Patriots are managing something more serious than they’re letting on.
Those questions aren’t coming out of nowhere. Maye was limited in practice on Jan. 29 and didn’t practice the following day. The injury is believed to have occurred before the AFC Championship Game against Denver and may have worsened after a third-quarter hit from Broncos safety Talanoa Hufanga. While Maye finished the game and helped in the win, shoulder injuries, especially to a throwing arm, are rarely as simple as they sound.
Since then, Maye has been openly optimistic. On Super Bowl Opening Night, he said he threw as much as he would during a normal practice and felt strong doing it. He also acknowledged dealing with an illness earlier in the week, but said he’s turned a corner since arriving in Cali.
“I feel good. I’ll be just fine. … This is the Super Bowl,” Maye said, via NFL.com.
Head coach Mike Vrabel echoed that confidence, saying Maye’s practices have looked sharp and that the ball is coming out of his hand well. Publicly, there’s no sign the Patriots are preparing for anything other than Maye at full strength. PFSN’s QBi has given him a score of 91.1 and an A- grade for the season.
