Patriots HC Vrabel Sends Message to Maye, 'Stop Trying to Choke the Life Out of Every Single Play'

New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel believes quarterback Drake Maye would benefit from simplifying things on the field and getting out of his own head.

Appearing on WEEI's The Greg Hill Show, Vrabel said broadly that "quarterbacks want to make plays" when asked about Maye. He went on to make a golf analogy to discuss what might be going wrong with the MVP runner-up.

"I think sometimes when Greg and I go golfing, we really want to make a good score, right?" Vrabel said. "Sometimes we're so focused on it that we try to choke the life out of the golf club, and we're squeezing it so damn tight that the ball has no choice but to go sideways.

"We need to stop trying to choke the life out of every single play. We need to relax. We need to settle in and go play football and not try to force things that aren't there."

Speaking with the media, the coach said he wants to strike a "great balance" between perhaps making the offense simpler while adding some new wrinkles:

Through three games, the Patriots are 22nd in average yards (307.0) and tied for last in points (12.0).

The performance of Maye has been the biggest head-scratcher. He has thrown for 585 yards, one touchdown and a league-high six interceptions.

A.J. Brown's ankle injury undoubtedly has something to do with how badly New England's offense is faring. Much was expected of the star wide receiver, and he has logged a total of 31 snaps.

Maye managed to make do pretty well without Brown in 2025, though. There's a marked difference between how he looked in the pocket last year versus now.

Perhaps a lot of it is mental. Maye had a clunker in a Week 1 loss to the Seattle Seahawks and has started putting more pressure on himself to improve, which has the opposite of its intended effect.

A Week 4 matchup with the Buffalo Bills provides the Patriots with an opportunity to rebuild their confidence. The overall vibes around the team will lift if New England takes down one its strongest challenger for the AFC East crown.

Conversely, a loss to Buffalo might raise even more alarm bells in Foxborough.