FOXBOROUGH, Mass. —Justin Fields wasn’t the Jets’ biggest issue Thursday night. He wasn’t particularly good, either, but Aaron Glenn was right when he said others need to help their quarterback. Adonai Mitchell’s three drops played far more of a role in this 27-14 loss to the Patriots than anything Fields did or didn’t do.
That’s irrelevant. Fields is a Band-Aid. But did you see the guy on the other side? The one who goes by the name Drake Maye? The Patriots passer was spectacular. New England doesn’t win if he’s not under center. He showed, singlehandedly, what a difference a franchise quarterback — a legitimate, organization-altering signal-caller — makes. It’s everything.
So any hesitation the Jets might have had about moving heaven and earth to get their guy this offseason … it better have evaporated in primetime. No price is too high.
“He’s good,” Will McDonald said.
The Patriots’ two-decade reign of terror within the AFC seemed over — finally. Tom Brady left for Tampa Bay, and absent a brief glimmer with Mac Jones, they had become mortal. Four times in five years they finished with a losing record. They went 4-13 in back-to-back seasons. But after the first of those years, they drafted Maye third overall.
As a rookie, he took his lumps but developed. The Patriots then hired Mike Vrabel, who brought Josh McDaniels with him. They spent the offseason rounding out the roster around their young quarterback. All the while, Maye kept getting better … and better … and better.
Now he’s a star.
This victory over the Jets puts New England at 9-2. They’ve already taken down Buffalo — they beat the Bills in Week 5. The Jets put up a fight, but were no match. Not because of New England’s defense. Not because of their rushing attack. Because of Maye.
“He’s a nice quarterback,” Quincy Williams said.
Maye finished 25 of 34 for 281 yards and a touchdown. He completed his first 11 passes. He moved within the pocket to buy time and hit throws when the Jets’ pressure got home. He picked apart their undermanned secondary when it didn’t. He threw receivers open the few times the Jets did have competent coverage.
Fans chanted “M-V-P” at various points throughout the night — justifiably so. Maye has thrown for 2,856 yards, 20 touchdowns and just five interceptions this season. He has two more scores on the ground. He entered Thursday with the second-best betting odds to win MVP.
The Patriots are back from their brief hiatus from success and again look like conference favorites.
Again: because of Maye.
“We know he’s a good player,” Glenn said.
The Jets took a gamble with Fields this offseason. They saw his talent — and there is a ton of it — and believed that if they could marry it with mental growth, they might have a success story similar to Geno Smith (Raiders), Baker Mayfield (Buccaneers) or Sam Darnold (Vikings, now Seahawks). They knew the odds were long, but they deemed it worth a chance. It hasn’t paid off.
Fields went 15 of 26 for 116 yards and a touchdown on a play where Craig Woodson fell down. He fumbled a snap. It was the fifth time in nine starts he failed to reach 120 passing yards. He’s not very good, and he’s clearly not a franchise quarterback. The Jets know that, even though they plan to stick with him for now.
It’s why they traded Quinnen Williams to the Cowboys for a 2026 second-rounder and 2027 first. It’s why they traded Sauce Gardner to the Colts for two first-rounders in 2026 and 2027. They’re gearing up to either draft their Maye organically – the 2-8 Jets are tied for the second-worst record in the NFL – or have the ammunition to go up and get him via trade.
Ideally, it’s the former. No price is too high if it’s the latter. They saw Thursday night what a difference the guy makes.
NIL has changed college football. Players stay in school longer than ever, making it tougher to know who will actually enter the draft. Alabama’s Ty Simpson, Oregon’s Dante Moore and Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza are among the more intriguing prospects. Jets general manager Darren Mougey attended Mendoza’s game against Penn State, watching him engineer a game-winning drive. He’ll almost certainly scout others the rest of the way.
You don’t have anything until you have your quarterback. Once you do, the rest falls into place.
The Patriots got their guy. They’re a contender again.
The Jets must do whatever they can to get theirs.
