"It’s Offensively Unacceptable": Drake Maye Breaks Silence After New England Patriots Turnover

The New England Patriots had a day to forget against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but one early mistake came from a strange moment. Drake Maye lost the football while trying to throw a deep pass. He was not hit and there was no pressure on him. Later, Maye explained that blood from center Jared Wilson's cut had reached the football. The ball became slippery and came out of his hand. Jacksonville recovered it and turned the mistake into a touchdown. Maye still refused to blame Wilson and admitted that protecting the football was his responsibility.

Drake Maye Explains How Jared Wilson's Bloody Hand Changed The Play

“Jared happened to be bleeding on his hand and got the football,” Maye said. “And I was trying to put one to Kyle [Williams] and slipped out of my hand.”

Wilson said he did not know when he had been cut. “I just got cut up. I have no idea when it happened,” Wilson said. “Drake was like, 'Jared, blood.' I was like, 'Oh, I got you, I'll fix it.' That's pretty much how it goes.”

The Patriots center then had the cut treated and wrapped. “I have no idea what happened. I don't know if this happened after or before [the fumble]. I really don't know. Honestly. I just see it and get it fixed as fast as possible. They put some brown stuff on it to like kind of stop the bleeding and they just wrap it up and it's fine. It's like a 10-second process - tape it up. Done.”

oh no Drake Maye... pic.twitter.com/uwCHx632lv

— Arye Pulli (@AryePulliNFL) September 27, 2026

Wilson also explained why cuts can happen. “Part of football. Unfortunate situation,” Wilson said. “[It's] part of being a center. I'm pretty sure you ask anybody, any center in the league that doesn't wear a glove, you get cut up. Quarterback's going to say something, get it fixed. That's pretty much it.”

Drake Maye Still Takes Blame As Patriots Turnovers Keep Growing

The unusual turnover was only the start of Maye's difficult game. He later threw interceptions to Travis Hunter and Jarrian Jones. Maye finished 14-of-25 for 199 yards with no touchdowns and three turnovers before Tommy DeVito replaced him late in the fourth quarter.

Maye accepted responsibility despite the strange play.

“At the same time, I have to hold on to the football.”

He later added, “It's disappointing. The ball starts rolling that way, we can't get out of our own way, and I can't get out of my own way personally — I have to look myself in the mirror and take this as a turning point.”

The Patriots quarterback also said, “We have to realize that what we're doing out there offensively is unacceptable. Starts with myself.”

Mike Vrabel did not avoid the issue either. “We haven't made good decisions with the football. We have to get it fixed,” Vrabel said. “And everybody else has to do much better, starting with me.”

The blood on the football was an unusual reason for a turnover. But for New England, the bigger concern was the three giveaways and an offense that managed only six points in a 35-6 loss.