It took Drake Maye one game to prove the Patriots very right and terribly wrong

The New England Patriots' Week 6 matchup against the Houston Texans was a real good news, bad news situation. We'll start with the good news first: Rookie quarterback Drake Maye sure does appear to have the goods. Thrown into the fire for his first NFL start against a ferocious Houston defense, Maye held his own — and considering the circumstances (and how little help he was getting from his offensive line), holding his own is about as good as could be expected. Yes, Maye threw two picks, but he never stopped trying to push the ball downfield, uncorking some downright beautiful throws that sure made him look like a future franchise QB.

The final numbers were not bad at all: 20-33 for 243 yards, three TDs and two picks, plus 38 more yards on the ground on just five carries. He's got more than enough arm and athleticism, and while there's sure to be a learning curve as he figures out what he can and can't get away with at this level, this was about as promising a debut as Patriots fans could've hoped for.

Now for the bad news: The Patriots got walloped 41-21, for starters, but given that New England never pretended to be competing this year we won't harp on that too much. The real downside to this game was the questions that Maye's performance raised about Jerod Mayo and this coaching staff moving forward.

Drake Maye shows plenty of promise vs. Texans ... and raises some questions about his coaching staff

The Patriots very much did not put Maye in a position to succeed, deciding to name him the starter the week they just happened to be playing among the fiercest and fastest and most physical defenses in the league. And yet, despite all that, Maye never looked rattled, coming back and making plays time and time again. In fact, he did a lot more than previous starter Jacoby Brissett did in the team's first five games combined.

In the abstract, you can understand why the Patriots handled their QB situation the way they did. Maye was a great pick at third overall, but even his biggest proponents admitted he was a bit wild coming out of North Carolina. Brissett, meanwhile, was the protoypical caretaker QB, a veteran who can take care of the ball and be the adult in the room while the young gun gets his feet underneath him.

Except Brissett proved to be a bit worse than advertised, especially behind an offensive line that demanded mobility the veteran simply doesn't have. Running him out there on a weekly basis would be understandable if the coaching staff had their doubts about Maye's progression — but if the coaching staff had their doubts about Maye's progression, Patriots fans should maybe have their doubts about this coaching staff. Watching the rookie hold his own against DeMeco Ryans and Co. on Sunday, it was hard not to wonder why New England hadn't turned Maye loose earlier, and where he might be in his development if they had.