TAMPA, Fla. – Did the Patriots ask Drake Maye not to score and intentionally go down?

For a moment, it looked like it. After the game, Mike Vrabel wouldn’t say, and the quarterback denied it.

With 1:44 left in the first half, the Patriots had a first-and-goal from the 1-yard line. On the first play, Maye kept the ball, leaned forward, and appeared to take a knee for no gain. Since the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were out of timeouts, it looked like the Patriots were trying to drain the clock.

If that’s what they were doing, it almost cost them. The Patriots failed to score on the next two attempts and needed a fantastic catch by Stefon Diggs to score with time expiring in the second quarter.

After the game, Vrabel was asked if the team had asked Maye not to score on that first play.

“I

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