Greg Bedard Patriots Podcast with Nick Cattles · Boston Sports Journal

Was the loss to the Bills on Drake Maye?

·54 min·4 clips

Greg Bedard reveals Drake Maye had one of the worst halves of football he's ever graded.

This episode of the Greg Bedard Patriots Podcast with Nick Cattles analyzes the Patriots' loss to the Buffalo Bills, focusing on quarterback Drake Maye's performance. Hosts Greg Bedard and Nick Cattles, veteran Patriots analysts for CLNS Media, dissect the game's pivotal second-half collapse. Their central question is whether the loss can be attributed to the rookie quarterback. The Patriots built a lead with 177 rushing yards in the first half but were outscored 28-3 after halftime. Bedard argues the team needed three things to win: health for key players like Robert Spillane, solid play in all three phases, and for Maye to match Josh Allen's level. Special teams were "atrocious," highlighted by three long kickoff returns. Maye earned a "solid B" grade in the first half but an "F" in the second, with Bedard running out of room on his negative grading sheet. Cattles criticizes offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels for abandoning the run, calling only one run in the first ten second-half plays. A surprising claim is that this loss could be a "blessing" for the young Patriots team, a sentiment veteran Stephon Diggs echoed in the locker room. Bedard notes that historically, Super Bowl winners rarely have extremely long winning streaks, making a late-season loss potentially useful. The hosts detail specific Maye errors, like a predetermined throw to a covered Treyvon Henderson while Keon Coleman was open on a crosser. On a critical third-and-25, Maye forced a deep ball to Mack Hollins instead of taking an easy checkdown to Hunter Henry. The analysis reveals the Bills successfully doubled Diggs on third downs, and Diggs himself ran several incorrect routes. Cattles points out the wear on older free-agent additions like Diggs, Harold Landry, and Carlton Davis as the season grinds on. Bedard places most blame for the loss on players, not coaches, stating that if players get credit for wins, they must accept discredit for losses. The tone is analytical and direct, breaking down film with specific play examples while pushing back against reactive fan criticism on social media. Patriots fans seeking a detailed, film-based breakdown of the loss and Maye's development will appreciate this episode. Listeners who prefer optimistic, big-picture commentary without critical quarterback analysis might want to skip it.

As heard by us

A measured postgame read that treats one bad half as part of the story, not the whole verdict.

The episode stays on the Patriots' second half against the Bills and keeps circling the same question: was Drake Maye the problem, or just the clearest sign of a team falling apart around him?

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Why you'd press play

If you want a calm, fact-based take on the Bills-Patriots second half, start here.

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