Drake Maye’s arm failed him on the NFL’s biggest stage, but the real story of his struggle began weeks earlier. While many wondered if they were the big-game jitters for the second-year quarterback, he himself clarified what really happened in the New England Patriots’ 29-13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

“My shoulder feels…I shot it up so…not much feeling,” Maye addressed his shoulder issues after the game. “It was good to go.”

Turns out, during the AFC Championship win over the Denver Broncos, with under four minutes remaining in the third quarter, the signal-caller landed awkwardly on his right shoulder while being tackled. The injury was significant, and he was listed on the Patriots’ injury list for the Super Bowl due to his right shoulder. He had full participation heading into the Super Bowl, but his gameday status was unspecified.

However, doctors reportedly gave him painkillers so he could play in the biggest game. While he pushed through his adversity and didn’t compromise on his playing time on Sunday, his struggles were in plain sight. And it wasn’t even in the numbers.

He went 27-of-43 for 295 yards and hauled in two touchdowns. On paper, these numbers don’t scream catastrophic, but those attending the game live or watching closely on TV could see that his passes lacked their usual edge.

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Throughout the contest, Seattle’s defense tortured Maye. Sure, they are the top defense, which forced three turnovers and six sacks on the QB, but Maye wasn’t playing like himself either. 

Case in point, the Patriots didn’t score anything until only 12:33 were remaining in the game. Their second touchdown came with just 2:28 remaining. Even then, Maye almost made a run on a 2nd-&-7 himself, but then plopped the ball to running back Rhamondre Stevenson midway for a touchdown. That wasn’t perfect either.

In fact, Maye held his head as he made the short left throw to Stevenson, thinking he threw the ball too close to the ground, and the RB touched it for an incomplete pass. However, upon review, the referees ruled it a complete pass and a touchdown.

But the turning point had already come in the fourth quarter. The Patriots seemed to finally gain their momentum in the final period when Maye threw a pass to rookie wideout Kyle Williams. However, it landed directly in the hands of Seahawks safety Julian Love, who brought it back to New England’s 38-yard line.

The loss stings, as Maye was the second-youngest QB to start in the Super Bowl. Also, his team entered the league with a deep playoff run despite being regarded as the underdogs. But his earlier message reflected this confidence when he returned to practice on Monday. 

“I felt good from the flight and throwing out there today, I think it turned the corner, and I really had no doubt in being 100% for the game,” he said. “This is the Super Bowl. We get two weeks to prepare for it and do whatever we got to do to get it right. I’ve got confidence and feel good.”

Seattle never let them fully click and clinched the Lombardi Trophy. After the loss, head coach Mike Vrabel knew who to blame.

Drake Maye’s head coach calls out his team for Super Bowl loss

The Patriots were already the underdogs on Sunday as they had one of the easiest schedules in the league for the regular season. Meanwhile, the Seahawks took the field as a favored team, and they backed it up right from the start. Mike Macdonald’s team rode a suffocating defense and a dominant night from Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III. He played like the last man standing in his group, in which no other player contributed more than five yards to the ground attack.

On the other sideline, Patriots coach Mike Vrabel had nobody who had shown up at the right time, and his comment after the loss was straightforward:

“Nobody played good enough for us to win,” he said, pinning the blame squarely on the locker room.

But he also made it clear that his team is “disappointed, not discouraged” by the outcome. His disappointment is valid because Seattle’s defense, aka “Dark Side,” smothered Drake Maye’s offense early in the game.

On the other hand, the Patriots allowed Seattle to score three points in the first quarter before kicker Jason Myers added two field goals in the next one. The Seahawks were up 9-0 after the second quarter, and the momentum remained with Seattle even after halftime.

New England managed only one first down in the entire third quarter, while Seattle pushed its lead to 12–0. Offensively, the Seahawks controlled the game’s tempo, with QB Sam Darnold keeping his characteristic cool and leading methodical drives.

Walker rushed for 135 yards on 27 carries, while Darnold threw for 202 yards and one touchdown while posting just one sack.

While the Patriots lit up the scoreboard in the last quarter, the game had already slipped out of reach. Two late interceptions and a final score of 29–13 summed it all up. Vrabel’s assessment was blunt, and it set the tone for what the Patriots must fix moving forward if they want to repeat a similar but more successful run.