The Top 10 Patriots Moments of 2024: No. 2

Our offseason countdown continues with the No. 2 Best Patriots Moment of 2024.

Here we are, closing out June, and we only have two moments left on our countdown of the Top 10 New England Patriots Moments of 2024. I’m looking forward to celebrating our nation’s independence next week with my independence from ever thinking about last season again.

The list so far:

10. Jerod Mayo out, Mike Vrabel in.
9. Drake Maye hits Austin Hooper for a 38-yard TD on 4th-and-15 against the Miami Dolphins.
8. Joey Slye nails a 63-yard field goal to close out the half against the San Francisco 49ers.
7. A free play gets DeMario Douglas into the end zone vs. the Los Angeles Chargers.
6. A nine-sack day helps list the Patriots over the Chicago Bears.
5. A late 70-yard touchdown drive hands the Jets their fifth consecutive loss, and the Patriots their second win.
4. The Patriots stun the Bengals on opening weekend.
3. Drake Maye’s throws his first touchdown pass to Kayshon Boutte against the Texans.

I’m guessing that my Number Two moment ranks first overall for most of you, but I’m saving that one for what I think is the moment that mattered most in 2024. But what follows is, in my opinion at least, the best thing that happened for this team on the field last year.

2. Drake Maye hits Rhamondre Stevenson in the end zone with no time left on the clock to tie the game against the Titans.

The Week 9 matchup between the Patriots and Tennessee Titans didn’t have much appeal to anybody outside of the New England and Tennessee areas. The Patriots had doubled their win total the week before with some late heroics to take down the Jets and sat at 2-6, while Tennessee’s lone win on the year came back in Week 4 against the Dolphins. Two teams whose season was over before the halfway point of the NFL calendar met on November 3, 2024 to see who could out-suck the other.

As far as the 2024 season went, this represented one of New England’s better games. Both teams traded points and turnovers, and the game was knotted up 10-10 until late in the fourth quarter, when Mason Rudolph was able to capitalize on the short field generated by a Drake May strip sack to take the 17-10 lead. Both teams traded punts on the ensuing two possessions, but a 25-yard Marcus Jones punt return set the Patriots up on the 50-yard line with exactly two minutes left to play. For the first time in his career, Drake Maye found himself in position for some late-game heroics.

With a poise that completely belied his inexperience, Maye got right to work. He hit Kayshon Boutte for 11 yards, then Rhamondre Stevenson for nine. A 7-yard scramble on the next play brought the Patriots to the Tennessee 22 with 40 seconds left to play. Another quick out to Mondre followed by a strike to Hunter Henry up the middle, and it was 1st-and-goal at the 5, no timeouts left.

A quick spike stopped the clock with eight seconds to play. Maye’s 2nd-and-goal attempt to Boutte on the short out fell incomplete. It was 3rd-and-goal with 4 seconds left. Time for one more play.

At the snap, the initial read seemed to be Henry on a corner route, but he was covered. Protection was solid, allowing Maye time to look for his second option, Austin Hooper on the out route. Hooper was also covered (and possibly held), and as the protection started to break down, Maye had no choice but to improvise. He started rolling out to his right, but his path was cut off by future Patriots legend Harold Landry. Maye cut back towards the middle, right into the path of a charging Arden Key, who had him dead to rights. A beautiful juke left Key grabbing nothing but air as Maye scrambled left and began to set his feet for an end zone throw. But two charging Titans defenders put to bed any thoughts of getting a pass off, forcing yet another backstep just as Landry found home. With three defenders on him, Maye launched a pass as he fell to the dirt, right to where Rhamondre Stevenson had come open. Mondre caught the ball for the score.

Overtime, here we come.

The Patriots would go on to lose this game 20-17, but that didn’t really matter. I would imagine that nobody reading this remembered the score of this one until just now. But what everyone remembers is this final play of regulation, where a rookie QB pulled out a miracle and put his team in position to steal a win in OT.

Other people may have had different “Maye is the guy” experiences during the course of the season, but this moment was for sure mine. It was just an unbelievable play, and one that Maye orchestrated almost entirely on his own. The level of poise, athleticism, accuracy, and trust in his teammates isn’t something you see very often in first-year players, and that Maye was able to pull this off with the game on the line was incredible. 2024 was a year of finding reasons to be excited about this upcoming season, and if this moment didn’t get you amped up for 2025, I don’t know what could have.

Maybe Maye will flame out. Maybe he won’t be able to build off of an impressive rookie campaign. It wasn’t that long ago that another Patriot rookie QB had a strong game against the Titans, and now he’s a backup in Jacksonville. But there just seems to be something different about Drake Maye, and plays like this one only reinforce that for me. This was hands-down the best Patriots offensive play of 2024, all orchestrated by what we’re hoping is the future of the franchise, so here it is at Number 2.

Check out full game highlights here.