Drake Maye stood on the sideline Sunday, bundled up against the cold, watching as Josh Allen and the Bills closed out a 35-31 win - New England’s first loss since September. The rookie quarterback had just turned in his lowest passing yardage total of the season, and the second-lowest of his young career. And while the Patriots are still riding high at 11-3, Sunday’s loss exposed a familiar question that’s becoming harder to ignore: Do the Patriots have enough at wide receiver to go toe-to-toe with the AFC’s best?
Let’s be clear - this season has been a revelation in Foxborough. Maye has looked every bit like the franchise quarterback the Patriots hoped he’d be.
The offense, under new leadership, has been productive and creative. And the receiver room?
It’s outperformed expectations. Stefon Diggs, at 32 and coming off a major knee injury, has been a steadying presence.
Kayshon Boutte has emerged as one of the league’s most dangerous deep threats. And the overall depth at the position is better than it’s been in years.
But Sunday’s game against Buffalo was a reminder that “better than expected” might not be enough come playoff time.
Diggs and Mack Hollins were the only receivers to catch more than one pass in the game. Hollins led all wideouts with just 41 receiving yards. That’s not going to cut it against a Bills defense that, while solid, isn’t even the stiffest test New England will face down the stretch - not with the Ravens up next and the playoffs looming.
Head coach Mike Vrabel didn’t sugarcoat it when asked about the receivers on Monday. He emphasized the fundamentals: route running, blocking in the run game, reading coverages quickly, and creating separation.
“Receivers have a very unique job,” Vrabel said. “Their job is to get open and create separation or have great spacing. Their job isn’t to decide if they get the ball thrown to them or not.”
It wasn’t a shot at the group - more of a challenge. And it’s one they’ll need to meet if the Patriots want to make a real run in January.
Because here’s what’s coming: a gauntlet of playoff-caliber defenses. The AFC postseason field is nearly set, and it’s loaded with teams that can defend the pass.
Six teams already have a 95% or better chance of making the playoffs, and the final spot will go to either the Steelers or Ravens - both of whom bring top-half pass defenses to the table. In fact, five of the seven projected AFC playoff teams rank in the top 10 in pass defense based on expected points added per play.
Only the Steelers (13th) and Jaguars (14th) fall outside that group.
That’s the kind of competition Maye and this receiver corps will face in the postseason - and maybe even sooner. The Ravens, who rank 10th in pass defense, are up next on Sunday night.
Now, the Patriots’ receiver strategy this year has been more about depth than star power. Diggs, surprisingly, ranks third among Patriots wideouts in total snaps this season, trailing both Hollins and Boutte.
And while Diggs leads the team in receiving yards, he’s the only one over 550. That said, four different receivers have at least 400 yards, showing how much this offense spreads the ball around.
But that approach has its limits. The Patriots are on pace for their sixth straight season without a 1,000-yard receiver - a streak that goes back to Julian Edelman’s days catching passes from Tom Brady. And while this group has done more than many expected, the margin for error gets razor-thin in the playoffs.
That’s why these final few weeks - starting with Baltimore - are so crucial. Not just for seeding or momentum, but for evaluating what this team will need to do in the offseason.
Much of the conversation post-Bills loss has centered on the defense, and rightly so. That’s where the big-ticket investments are likely to go: edge rushers, linebackers, secondary depth.
But wide receiver is quietly climbing the list of priorities.
The offense doesn’t need a full rebuild. Maybe a backup tight end, a center, or a right tackle.
But the passing game needs a jolt - whether that’s through free agency or, perhaps, a first-round pick at wide receiver. Maye has shown he can be the guy.
Now the question is whether he has enough firepower around him to thrive when the stakes are highest.
So yes, this has been a great season for the Patriots - a bounce-back year full of promise. But how far this team goes in January may come down to how much more they can squeeze out of their receiver room.
The tests are coming. The Ravens are first.
The playoffs are next. And if the Patriots want to make noise, their wideouts will have to rise to the moment.