FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Members of New England's 2016 Super Bowl-winning team reunited at Gillette Stadium on Sunday for Rob Gronkowski’s induction into the Patriots Hall of Fame.
The current Patriots could have used Gronkowski’s playmaking abilities against Green Bay. The defending AFC champions could also have benefited from having a quarterback who placed a premium on ball security. Alas, Tom Brady was calling the game from the Fox television booth.
From Drake Maye throwing three interceptions in a game for the second time this season, to Rhamondre Stevenson fumbling the ball on a four-turnover day for the Patriots, the signs of regression were everywhere in a 45-27 loss to the Packers.
“I wasn’t good today,” Maye said.
It's been an up-and-down season for Maye, who was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Month for October after a rough opening month. The 2025 MVP runner-up kicked off the season with a three-interception game against defending Super Bowl champion Seattle.
Maye now has 11 picks, tied with Justin Herbert of the winless Chargers for the most in the NFL.
Maye’s first interception came two plays into the first series of the game. The bad throw gave the Packers a short field, and they needed just two plays to cover 14 yards for a touchdown.
“You can’t put the team in the hole straight off the bat, first possession,” Maye said.
Green Bay made New England pay for the turnovers, scoring 21 points after takeaways. Coach Mike Vrabel said his team became predictable after the Packers took a 17-0 lead.
“It’s tough to spot good teams any sort of lead, and we’ve done that,” Vrabel said.
Once again, the Patriots were without their top two offseason acquisitions at wide receiver, A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs. Running back TreVeyon Henderson remains sidelined indefinitely after revealing last week that he had spent several days in a hospital undergoing tests to determine the cause of unexplained neurological symptoms that have affected his strength and coordination.
Having a healthy complement of offensive options might solve some of the problems currently plaguing the Patriots. Taking care of the ball is another important area to shore up after Stevenson committed his second fumble of the season and the 19th of his career, 11 of which he lost. Stevenson left the game in the fourth quarter after suffering a knee injury.
“We’ve been through a lot, and we’ve got a lot of bumps and bruises. Got some big wins, got some bad losses. We’ve got to find a way to be consistent. Coach (Vrabel) preaches being consistent,” Maye said. “We won the AFC, played in the Super Bowl. Everybody’s coming after us, and we’ve got to respond.”
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