Why Patriots’ Alex Van Pelt Changed His Mind About Drake Maye Run Plays

Before the Patriots battled the Buffalo Bills in a classic AFC East clash, New England quarterback Drake Maye verbally expressed his desire to move the ball himself with his big frame.

Offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt disagreed with the rookie, stating the Patriots didn’t run plays designed to have Maye run the football to keep the young signal-caller healthy — especially given New England’s abysmal record.

However, against the Bills, Van Pelt called multiple Maye-designed run plays in New England’s close loss. So, what changed from one week to the next?

“I think they were very safe plays, safe calls. He was protected,” Van Pelt told reporters at Gillette Stadium on Thursday, per team-provided video. “We always have the ability to do those things. It’s just, when do we decide to do it? The situation, we ran it twice, one in the red area, one on fourth down where it was a clean look and he was protected on the edge. He just had to take care of himself once he got around the corner. The quarterback sneak, that’s something we do with all of our quarterbacks. Just happened to do it in a situation where it wasn’t expected.”

Van Pelt added: “Again, we’ll always try to protect our guy and make sure we keep him healthy like we are. I felt confident those were quarterback runs that would run into safe looks for him.”

In the second half of the Patriots-Bills game, Maye picked up two first downs on run plays. He finished the game with 30 rushing yards across six carries and was thrilled for the opportunity to help New England move the chains.

“I’m a big 6′5 dude who can pick up a yard and beat somebody with some speed. I think people underestimate me a little bit,” Maye said, per team-provided transcript. “I think it helps us offensively to move the chains. At this point, we need some help, whether it’s short yardage or different areas like in the red zone, for me to go make a play.”

Maye and the Patriots took an early 14-0 lead against the Bills last Sunday but ultimately lost 24-21. New England will have the opportunity to exact revenge against Buffalo when the two clubs meet in the final regular-season game on Jan. 5.