The injury-ravaged New England Patriots dropped their second one-sided defeat to an NFC North team in two weeks, Sunday, falling 35-10 to the Detroit Lions in Munich, Germany. But that wasn’t even the worst news of the day for the defending AFC champions.
Quarterback Drake Maye will likely miss time even after the Patriots’ bye week, according to Dr. David Chao, who spotted a right high ankle sprain upon viewing video of the third-year quarterback’s injury on the first drive of the game.
The New England Patriots, now 5-5 after the loss to Detroit, must plan for a stretch without their quarterback that, in Chao’s view, the upcoming bye week won’t cover.
Maye’s day ended on the Patriots’ opening drive at Allianz Arena. Detroit’s Aidan Hutchinson sacked him on third-and-goal, and Maye walked to the bench under his own power before heading to the locker room. He had completed three of four passes for 48 yards and scrambled for 11 more.
The drive ended with a 33-yard field goal by Andy Borregales. Hutchinson hurt his knee celebrating the sack. The Patriots listed Maye as questionable, then ruled him out in the second quarter.
Chao’s earlier posts called it an apparent right high ankle sprain and a mild right high ankle sprain. His video went further, calling it a multiweek injury and saying Maye is likely to miss time after the bye.
Chao hopes the quarterback avoids injured reserve, a move that would cost a player at least four games, and stresses that his video-based assessments are not formal diagnoses.
Patriots left tackle Will Campbell, a close friend of Maye’s, told reporters that Maye seemed to be in “good spirits” after the game, despite the injury, according to MassLive reporter Mark Daniels.
Asked after the game about Maye’s status, head coach Mike Vrabel said he had no update on Maye.
“We’ll have to get some tests run and see when we come back what it ends up being,” Vrabel said, in video posted by ESPN’s Mike Reiss.
Drake Maye’s Injury History
Chao is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon who subspecializes in sports medicine and has performed more than 18,000 surgeries. He spent more than 17 seasons as the team physician for the San Diego Chargers and went on to found Sports Injury Central and its SIC Score. He posts injury analysis on social media as @ProFootballDoc and has worked as an injury expert for SiriusXM and Fox Sports Radio and as chief medical officer of ESPN’s X Games.
He has weighed in on Maye before. In January, Chao posted that the quarterback hurt his shoulder against the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. “No. I wouldn’t say that anybody hurt anything,” Patriots coach Mike Vrabel replied when asked about it, according to 98.5 The Sports Hub. The next day, Maye appeared on the team’s injury report limited with a right shoulder issue.
Maye, 24, was born Aug. 30, 2002, in Huntersville, North Carolina. He was the ACC Player of the Year at North Carolina in 2022 and went third overall in the 2024 draft to New England. Last season, he threw for 4,394 yards and 31 touchdowns, finished as the MVP runner-up and led the Patriots to Super Bowl LX, where the Seattle Seahawks won 29-13.
Before Sunday, Maye had never missed a regular-season start to injury. He has played through a knee issue and a concussion as a rookie, a hand injury at the end of 2025 and shoulder trouble in January and again in October.
New England Patriots Outlook Without Drake Maye
Tommy DeVito entered with 1,358 career passing yards and eight touchdowns, all with the New York Giants. His first drive crossed midfield before a third-down sack forced a punt. He later threw an interception before halftime with New England trailing 21-3, and the third quarter brought another three-and-out.
With the Lions ahead 28-3, DeVito finally scored in the fourth quarter on a 10-yard touchdown pass to Lan Larison. It was DeVito’s first scoring throw as a Patriot and Larison’s first touchdown in the NFL. Jahmyr Gibbs answered for the 35-10 final.
New England entered the day holding the AFC’s final wild-card spot at 5-4. Receiver A.J. Brown, who was placed on injured reserve in September with a high ankle sprain, also left Sunday with a hamstring injury.
Chao’s timeline puts the Nov. 29 trip to Los Angeles in question, followed by home games against the Buffalo Bills on Dec. 6 and the Minnesota Vikings on Dec. 10. The Patriots have not released a diagnosis or timetable beyond an ankle injury.
Patriots Get Grim Drake Maye Injury Return Outlook From Sports Doctor