New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye is not expected to play in Thursday night's preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts. This was confirmed by Mike Vrabel when he met with media members before training camp practice on Tuesday.
The Patriots' decision to rest Maye means more opportunities for backups Tommy DeVito and Behren Morton. DeVito in particular has had a strong training camp. He connected with veteran wide receiver Mack Hollins on a deep ball that went around 50 yards during a team period session against the Colts. It was arguably the best play of the entire practice.
Meanwhile, Morton is a bit more of an unknown as a player who hasn't had as many opportunities. The rookie sixth-round pick could get an extended look in the preseason with Maye sitting out and DeVito getting plenty of reps during the joint practice.
QB Drake Maye is not expected to play in Thursday’s preseason opener, per Mike Vrabel, who says that is always subject to change. pic.twitter.com/Rlx4CLxoG9
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) August 11, 2026
The Patriots have two scheduled joint training camp practices with the Philadelphia Eagles next week.
One has to wonder if the team will save game reps for that week or wait for the following week against the Cleveland Browns. The latter might make more sense given the large number of reps Maye will likely get in practice.
With that said, Thursday's game will be all about depth and seeing what the Patriots have on their roster for emergencies.
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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Is Patriots QB Drake Maye playing today?