Maye's Shoulder, a Patchwork Line, and the Worst Possible Timing

Drake Maye is dealing with a shoulder issue. The depth chart at quarterback currently lists Tommy DeVito ahead of him, which tells you something about where things stand. A year after throwing for 5,222 yards and 37 touchdowns and finishing among the best quarterbacks in the league, Maye is hurt and the wall in front of him is crumbling at the same time.

The offensive line situation has been documented here week by week since September. Onwenu went to IR first. Then Van Roten followed. Jake Kubas is the starting guard now. The protection that made Maye's 2025 season possible looks nothing like it did then, and that was before a shoulder injury entered the picture. A quarterback playing through any kind of arm issue needs clean pockets and quick decisions. New England's interior line is currently asking him for neither.

What makes this particularly uncomfortable is the quarterback depth behind Maye. The grounding shows Behren Morton active on the injury report, which means the backup situation has its own question marks. DeVito is a capable game manager, but he is not the reason this team went 14-3 last season.

The two problems — Maye's health and the line's condition — are bad enough separately. Together, they are the kind of convergence that turns a contending team's week into a genuine crisis. Worth watching closely.