Drake Maye Admits Major Regret After Patriots ‘TNF’ Loss to Bears

Drake Maye and the New England Patriots battled the Chicago Bears in a close "Thursday Night Football" matchup, with several pivotal plays influencing the outcome.

The Bears seemed to hold a comfortable lead with under 30 seconds left in the first half. That changed when the Bears' defense fell asleep and allowed the Patriots to executive play head coach Mike Vrabel said they practiced often, resulting in a touchdown with just three seconds remaining to make it 20-14 Bear at halftime.

However, there were other plays that Patriots quarterback Drake Maye said he wished he could do over. With 3:30 remaining in the second quarter, Maye attempted a touchdown pass to his tight end, Eli Raridon, only to see Bears linebacker D'Marco Jackson turn and intercept the ball in the end zone.

Scoring the touchdown there would probably have been a major difference maker in a game that finished 30-24.

"You know, gosh, it's just those plays, I talk about it all the time it's those plays you know can swing the game, can impact the game, and that was definitely one of them right there," Maye said of his interception. "I wish I definitely had that one back and a lot of plays.

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"I give credit to them. You know, they had a good plan on a short week and really got after us. We got two chances with the ball to go down and score and take the lead ... We just can't have penalties and me not operating at the high level to kind of move the chains and keep going, especially after a missed field goal," he told reporters postgame.

That was one of two red-zone opportunities that the Patriots had against the Bears. They scored on the other, when Maye extended his arm with the ball just enough to cross the goal line for a touchdown while being tackled.

Maye completed 24 of 31 passes for 321 yards and two touchdowns. He was intercepted once and sacked twice. Neither team fumbled the ball during the contest. For the most part, the Patriots' offensive line provided Maye with a comfortable pocket, giving him time to throw without facing consistent pressure from Chicago's defense.

The latest loss dropped the Patriots to 4-3 as they continue to contend for the AFC East months after losing in the Super Bowl to the Seattle Seahawks.

They'll next face a Miami Dolphins team that is currently winless. That game occurs on Sunday, Nov. 1 at 1 p.m. ET from Miami.

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