Drake Maye limited at Wednesday's Patriots practice with hand injury
FOXBORO -- Drake Maye will start for the New England Patriots in Sunday's regular-season finale as long as he's healthy. It looks like Jerod Mayo has an out just in case he wants to keep Maye on the bench against the Buffalo Bills.
New England can clinch the No. 1 pick with a loss to the Bills, but Mayo was adamant on Wednesday that he doesn't subscribe to tanking. He added that Maye is healthy, and if it stays that way, the rookie will play against Buffalo.
But Maye appeared on New England's injury report on Wednesday, as he was limited in the first practice of the week with an injury to his throwing hand. Maye has been seen flexing his hand in recent weeks, but only missed time last Saturday after he suffered a head injury early in the team's blowout loss to the L.A. Chargers.
The quarterback missed only one series in the lopsided defeat, and said Wednesday that he felt "great" health-wise entering the final week of the regular season. The rookie is eager to get the start in Sunday's finale against the Bills, and Mayo sounds ready to start him.
"Drake is our starting quarterback," Mayo said Wednesday. "If he's healthy during this week of practice, he'll play."
We'll see how the hand injury progresses through the week, and if Maye does indeed start, we'll see how long he plays against the Bills. Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott has already said that the Bills will play a mix of starters and bench players on Sunday as they prepare for the playoffs.
Patriots Wednesday Injury Report
The Patriots did not have cornerback Christian Gonzalez at Wednesday's practice, sidelined with the concussion that knocked him out of Saturday's loss. Chances are the star cornerback will not be playing come Sunday.
Starting center Ben Brown also missed Wednesday's session with a concussion, which had him sidelined for Week 17.
Receivers Kayson Boutte (illness) and Ja'Lynn Polk (shoulder) were also DNPs on Wednesday. In addition to Maye, nine other Patriots were limited in the team's first practice of Week 18:
S Kyle Dugger, Ankle/Quadricep
TE Hunter Henry, Foot
LB Anfernee Jennings, Knee
LB Titus Leo, Ankle
QB Drake Maye, Right Hand
S Jabrill Peppers, Hamstring
S Brenden Schooler, Abdomen
LB Sione Takitaki, Knee
LB Jahlani Tavai, Groin
OT Caedan Wallace, Ankle
Tune in to Sunday's Patriots-Bills clash on WBZ-TV -- the television home of the New England Patriots. Coverage begins Wednesday night with Patriots 1st Down at 9:30 p.m. on TV38 and streaming on CBSBoston.com, and continues Friday night with Patriots All Access at 7 p.m. on WBZ-TV. Pregame coverage begins Sunday morning at 11:30 a.m. with Patriots GameDay on WBZ-TV and streaming on CBSBoston.com, and switch over to TV38 after the game for full reaction and analysis on Patriots 5th Quarter.
