Perry: What you should know amid reports of Drake Mayes’ knee injury

Perry: What to know about Drake Maye’s knee injury after reports originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

If you think Drake Maye can be the future face of the New England Patriots franchise, you probably didn’t enjoy reading Wednesday’s injury report.

The rookie quarterback appeared on the injury report with a knee injury, and although he participated fully in practice, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe reported that Maye received an MRI later in the day, leading to further consternation over Maye’s health.

The good news? According to our Patriots insider Phil Perry, the Patriots do not believe Maye’s knee injury is serious. Perry joined Boston Sports tonight on Wednesday to detail what he’s hearing from the team about the No. 3 overall pick.

“I spoke to several people in the organization about this tonight and they told me they are not concerned about Drake Maye’s knee injury,” Perry said, as seen in the video player above. “He participated fully in training (Wednesday). We’ll be out there (Thursday) and we’ll be able to watch him closely to see how he moves in warmups, individual drills, etc.”

Perry was not told whether Maye received an MRI or not, but confirmed that the QB is expected to play in Week 7 against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London.

“What I can tell you is they’re not worried, he’s expected to play in London next weekend and we’ll see what training looks like (Thursday),” Perry said. “I know Jerod Mayo talked about transparency on the panel, but it feels like they’re getting closer together on this issue to some degree.”

Maye showed real potential in his first NFL start last Sunday, completing 20 of 33 passes for 243 yards and three touchdowns and recording a team-high 38 rushing yards on five carries. However, in the 41-21 loss to the Houston Texans, he also committed three turnovers (two interceptions and one fumble) and recorded four sacks while being hit eight times.

Perry speculated that Mayes’ injury may not have occurred in Sunday’s game, but noted that protecting the rookie QB is the Patriots’ top priority given his potential.

“To be completely honest, I’m not sure it happened in the game,” Perry said. “That could have happened in training. There will always be a problem: how to protect him in the future? He’s the crown jewel of the franchise, so it has to be something that a lot of resources are being spent on right now.

“I would look at (offensive coordinator) Alex Van Pelt; I would look at Jerod Mayo and ask him, ‘How do you plan things to protect this player better than he was protected last week?’ ‘Because you can’t survive like that.

Maye’s talent is obvious, but he plays behind one of the NFL’s worst offensive lines that has consistently faltered due to injuries and inconsistency. While his knee injury isn’t serious, it’s a reminder of how important it is for New England to keep its quarterback of the future upright and healthy.

Kickoff for the Patriots-Jaguars is set for 9:30 a.m. ET on Sunday at London’s Wembley Stadium.