FOXBOROUGH — We finally heard from Alex Van Pelt (aka Head Coach Offense, as Jerod Mayo referred to Van Pelt) and the rest of the Patriots' offensive positional assistant coaches (Ben McAdoo was among those not made available since they aren't technically positional coaches) and two things were clear:
Van Pelt doesn't feel the sky is falling with his unit.
"I thought in the last few practices, last week or so, some of the stuff showed up in our game where we feel like we're going to have a pretty decent unit," he said.
And Jacoby Brissett is the starting quarterback for this team for now, and that seems to be Van Pelt's preference.
Asked what's holding Maye back from being the starting quarterback: "Jacoby. Right now, he's our starting quarterback. The good news is, this week we'll get to play everybody. We're still in the evaluation process. We have one more preseason game, and our guys are going to play, so we have another chance to evaluate."
Does Maye have a chance to be the Week 1 starter?
"I'm sure," Van Pelt said. "Coach (Mayo) said it's an open competition. Obviously, we have one more game to go. I'm sure there's a chance. But I think, you know, as you go in, there's still a process of how you bring a rookie quarterback along. So I think that's important to remember it as well."
That is the key part. Van Pelt obviously believes there is a certain way to develop a young quarterback properly — especially one who was never under center or called plays in the huddle in college — and that means slow and steady and with certain benchmarks.
"I think it's just to bring them along," Van Pelt said. "There's certain things in this offense that Jacoby, having played in this offense, understands some of the tools that you can use to get you out of certain situations, pressure situations, things like that. Drake is still learning. But he has really been impressive the last few weeks of practice and in the game. And he's moving in the right direction, for sure. But again, rookie quarterback coming in and playing, you know, obviously we have Jacoby has tons of experience, not just in the NFL, but in this system. I've we won games with him in Cleveland. So I really understand ... I feel comfortable with his understanding. But again, Drake is, really, is pushing."
That's it basically right there. You hear that, and if it was up to Van Pelt, there's zero chance Maye would play anytime soon.
Van Pelt said Maye has checked off operating the huddle, getting the playcall out. That's step one. Probably the biggest step Maye has to master before he gets on the field in this offense — unless Mayo mandates Maye plays and the team operate out of the shotgun — is getting more comfortable under center. There's been multiple center/QB exchange issues with Maye on the field (including in the Eagles game). Maye has also bobbled some exchanges, including two today.
"Yeah, I mean, in our system, we go under center," Van Pelt said. "Obviously our run game is a big part of what we do, and that starts from under center. I think he's adapted well. It was foreign to him as he got here, but right now, it looks seamless. We did have an exchange issue from a snap under center that we have to clean up. But, you know, it's been smooth so far.
"The hardest position in sports is a quarterback, and especially for a rookie guy coming in and not seeing all the defense that they're going to see in the NFL, it's tough. It's hard to transition, and it takes a little bit of time. So I think we're going to be as patient as we can with that process.
"There's certain things we would do with Drake that maybe wouldn't do with Jacoby, so there is a little bit of element of that. But, you know, our system is our system. And he fits in, as well as Jacoby, very well."
Did Van Pelt regret not playing Maye more than six snaps in the opener?
"No, I don't regret it at all," he said. "I think that was our plan going in the whole time. We have not stepped off of our plan. We had a plan going in. We're going to get him started, and then, you know, add to the workload as the weeks progress. But, no, definitely not."
Van Pelt agreed that Maye has made a lot of progress since the Eagles game.
"I think he made a big jump last week from the game through practice," Van Pelt said. "He's had a really good couple days of practice, you know, the footwork and the timing, you start to see it pay off. And some of those throws, especially the third down conversion to (Javon) Baker, we repped that in practice, and it showed up in the game, and it's what it's supposed to look like. So he's making strides.
"He's taking steps forward every single day. That's the big thing. There's no regression. He's taking what he's learned from the previous practices and applying it to the next practice. He's been really impressive last few weeks, especially."
Other tidbits from Van Pelt:
Offensive line: "That's a work in progress as well. You know, we're really still evaluating. You'll see different lineups each practice. You'll see guys switch sides, go from guard to tackle, right tackle to left tackle. We're trying to find the best five guys, maybe not the best five players, but the best five guys that work together as a unit right now, and that's still a work in progress. Hopefully, this game will solidify that for us."
Ja'Lynn Polk: He's a competitor, you know? He has unbelievable ball skills. He's tough. He does the dirty work in the run game. Really smart player as well. Really, really happy with where he is right now."
Tyquan Thornton: "His ability to, one, separate is special, his speed down the field, his ability to run away from coverage and man coverage, all those things. And he's really been tough at the catch point this year. So he's getting stronger in that regard. You know, hopefully we see him shine here in this next game."
David Andrews and center: "It's critical position, and DA has been outstanding. He's taking the coaching, the leadership role that he plays for that offensive line group and the offense as a whole. Nick (Leverett) has done a great job stepping in and playing the center spot lately. We don't really miss a beat there. I know when, when DA missed a few days, Nick came in and rolled with the ones, and then it looked looked like it should."
On Brissett and his recent struggles: "I mean, it looks different sometimes than what you see. Things happen differently in the game, we had a route that wasn't run correctly before the interception that would have hopefully walked into the end zone for us, and we're not even talking about it right now. So things come up in the course of the game. First throw to Hooper, we had a chance there to convert that big third down, and we didn't. So it's a matter of inches. It's a matter of everybody being on the same page and doing the right thing all the time. But you know, he's a solid guy. He's a solid leader. He puts the work in. He's been great with Drake and the other quarterbacks in the room from a mentor standpoint, and real happy with what he's done for us."