FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Drake Maye rediscovered his confidence and production in the Patriots’ dominant 45-17 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.
And it has restored the belief that New England can compete with the AFC’s top teams this season.
It wasn’t just the third-year quarterbacks passing numbers – 26 of 34 for a season-high 374 yards and four touchdowns – that jumped off the page. It was the calm and deliberate way he commanded the offense that rang the loudest on a day in which he finished without a turnover for the first time this season.
Equally encouraging was that Maye left the field thinking there was even better football to be played.
“I think that’s what it’s like when we put some things together, and we still have some," he said. “I mean, it’s crazy to say we’ve still got some left to squeeze.”
It was also a good sign that Maye was able to get multiple players involved.
Playing without wide receivers A.J. Brown (injured reserve/sprained ankle) and Mack Hollins (injured reserve/calf), Maye spread the ball around to nine players.
But it wasn’t all smiles on the Patriots' sideline after running back TreVeyon Henderson (ankle) and left tackle Will Campbell (right knee) both left the field two plays apart.
It’s a particularly concerning injury for Campbell, who had to go on IR for four games late last season with a right knee injury before returning for the regular-season finale and playoff run.
This is also a recurring issue for Henderson after he dealt with an ankle injury in the preseason that caused him to miss the season opener against Seattle.
Campbell was replaced Sunday by rookie Caleb Lomu, who's expected to fill the role as Maye’s blindside protector for however long Campbell is out.
“I don’t think it was too big for him,” Patriots coach Mike Vrabel said of Lomu. “I think he was able to settle down. You didn’t really notice him a lot, so I think that’s probably a good thing.”
As well as the Patriots’ offense performed, the defense was just as solid. It limited a Raiders team that came in averaging 28.8 points per game to 5 of 13 on third down. The Patriots also forced a fumble and sacked Kirk Cousins twice. What’s more, New England never allowed the Raiders to get into a groove. After scoring a touchdown early in the first quarter, Las Vegas’ next four drives went: punt, punt, missed field goal and punt.
Discipline. The Patriots were called for a season-high 12 penalties for 116 yards, a total that Vrabel called “ridiculous” postgame. Even with several new combinations of players on the field because of injuries, those are numbers that must be addressed in a hurry.
WR Kyle Williams. The second-year receiver has been waiting to get more opportunities, and Maye linked up with him three times for 91 yards, including a 34-yard TD grab in the third quarter.
Secondary. Yes, the group was playing without starting cornerbacks Christian Gonzalez (shoulder) and Carlton Davis III (neck). But it had no answers for Raiders tight end Brock Bowers, who finished with eight catches for 110 yards and a touchdown.
The already injury-ravished secondary lost another player when cornerback Charles Woods exited in the third quarter with a shoulder injury.
1 — The number of Patriots quarterbacks (Maye) to complete at least 75% of their passes for at least 300 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions, along with a rushing touchdown in a single game.
The Patriots return to playing their AFC East rivals and host the New York Jets (2-3) on Sunday.
See AP’s full NFL coverage here
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel celebrates his team's touchdown against the Las Vegas Raiders during an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
New England Patriots wide receiver DeMario Douglas (3) blows kisses to fans after his touchdown against the Las Vegas Raiders during an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye smiles as he runs to congratulate a teammate after a touchdown against the Las Vegas Raiders during an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The first member the Navajo Nation to play in the NFL received a hero's welcome Monday in New Mexico, where he signed footballs and jerseys and posed with fans for photos on Indigenous Peoples Day.
Hundreds of people dressed in ribbon skirts, turquoise jewelry and Cowboys gear gathered in a park in Albuquerque to honor Shiyazh Pete, who played briefly with the Dallas Cowboys.
Cowboys fan Norman Smith said he traveled more than two hours from the Navajo community of Pueblo Pintado to shake hands with the young man he described as celebrity in his family.
“We’re just proud that somebody from the reservation had a chance like that,” Smith said.
Dominic Riley, a 16-year-old citizen of the Pueblo of Laguna and starting center on his high school team, was starstruck after Pete signed his baseball cap.
“He’s my inspiration,” Riley said. “Hopefully someday I’ll be there.”
Pete played two preseason NFL games as an offensive tackle. Against the Arizona Cardinals in August, he was greeted by thousands of Navajo Nation fans who cheered, waved tribal flags and yelled “yéego,” an affirmation that translates roughly to “with great effort, do it.” Then he returned to the sideline to a standing ovation after six snaps.
Now a free agent after being waived by the Cowboys, Pete has returned home to the Navajo Nation where fans say they hope he will return to the NFL before long.
Pete joins a long list of Native athletes who have broken barriers in sports, inspired pride in their communities and become role models for Native children. From Olympic champions to professional basketball players, these athletes have helped shape sports history while opening doors for those who follow.
Still widely considered the greatest athlete of all time, Jim Thorpe, of the Sac and Fox Nation in Oklahoma, won the decathlon and pentathlon in the 1912 Olympics. He also played six seasons in Major League Baseball and 12 in professional football, including in the American Professional Football Association, the precursor to the National Football League.
A track and field teammate of Thorpe’s at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, Louis Tewanima carried on the Hopi spiritual practice of running to gain recognition at the repressive institution. He finished ninth in the marathon at the 1908 Olympics in London and second in the 10,000 meters at the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, setting an American record in the event.
Modern surfing traces its history to Native Hawaiian Duke Kahanamoku. His international demonstrations between winning gold and silver swimming medals at the 1912, 1920 and 1924 Olympics made surfing widely known. Kahanamoku helped establish surfboards as standard ocean lifeguarding equipment. He acted in movies and served from 1935 to 1961 as sheriff of Honolulu.
Marathoner Ellison Myers “Tarzan” Brown, of the Narragansett Tribe in Rhode Island, won the Boston Marathon in 1936 and 1939 and competed for the U.S. in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Brown was to run the marathon in the 1940 Olympics, but the games were canceled due to World War II.
Oglala Lakota runner Billy Mills was the first non-European to win Olympic gold in the 10-kilometer run with his upset, Olympic-record race at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo. The run was the best U.S. medal finish in that Olympic event since Tewanima's silver more than half a century earlier — and Mills' 10K gold has yet to be equaled by a U.S. Olympian.
The first American woman to finish a marathon under 2 hours, 30 minutes, Patti Catalano Dillon, is of Mi’kmaw descent and grew up in Massachusetts. Dillon was runner-up in the 1980 New York Marathon and in the 1979, 1980 and 1981 Boston marathons. Dillon held world records in the half marathon and 30-kilometer and 20-kilometer runs.
Ryneldi Becenti was the first Native American WNBA athlete, playing for the Phoenix Mercury in the 1997 season. Becenti grew up playing fast-paced “rez ball” on the Navajo Nation and was a top player for Scottsdale Community College and Arizona State University before going pro as a player in Europe.
Los Angeles Sparks player Aaliyah Nye is a citizen of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi in Michigan. A top scorer in high school, then for Alabama, Nye joined the WNBA in 2025 as a Las Vegas Aces draft pick. In 2026, she was drafted and waived by the Toronto Tempo and Atlanta Dream before being claimed by the Sparks.
This story is published through the Global Indigenous Reporting Network at The Associated Press.
FILE - Dallas Cowboys offensive tackle Shiyazh Pete waves to fans after an NFL football practice on Aug. 26, 2026, in Frisco, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)
FILE - U.S. Marine Lt. Billy Mills breaks the tape to win the 10,000-meter race, setting an Olympic record, on Oct. 14, 1964, in Tokyo. (AP Photo, File)
FILE - Alabama guard Aaliyah Nye brings the ball up court during the first half in the first round of the NCAA college basketball tournament against Green Bay in College Park, Md., March 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams, File)
FILE - Notah Begay III hits off the third tee during the final round of the Champions Tour Principal Charity Classic golf tournament, June 2, 2024, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
FILE - Jim Thorpe, famous all-around athlete, is shown giving a drop-kicking exhibition at New York's polo grounds on Sept. 26, 1948, between halves of the Israel-U.S. international soccer match. (AP Photo, File)
FILE - Ellison M. Brown, winner of the Boston Marathon, is shown in an exhausted state after the race, April 19, 1939. (AP Photo/Abe Fox, File)
