The NFL is facing pressure to discipline the New England Patriots for allegedly failing to disclose the true severity of quarterback Drake Maye’s shoulder injury.
The second-year signal-caller was scrubbed from the official injury report just days before the showpiece event, leading many to believe he was perfectly healthy.
However, following New England’s 29-13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the truth behind Maye’s physical condition began to unravel during his media appearance.
Now, prominent Fox Sports analyst Nick Wright has sensationally claimed the league has ‘no choice’ but to hammer the franchise for ‘fudging’ their medical data.
Speaking on ‘First Things First,’ Wright hit out at the lack of transparency from the Patriots organization regarding the health of their franchise quarterback.
‘Do you agree with me that at this point, the NFL has no choice but to put some type of punishment on the Patriots for their Super Bowl injury report?’ Wright asked.
The NFL is facing pressure to discipline the New England Patriots for allegedly failing to disclose the true severity of quarterback Drake Maye’s shoulder injury
Speaking on ‘First Things First,’ Nick Wright hit out at the lack of transparency from the Patriots organization
‘If we’re at Wednesday, and the No. 1 story is the quarterback’s injury, the quarterback said, ‘I had the shoulder shot up,’ that he was dealing with something.’
Wright argued that with the rise of legal sports betting, accurate injury reporting is no longer a luxury but a requirement for the integrity of the entire league.
‘In the modern NFL world, where gambling is legal, if not encouraged, it is the quarterback of a Super Bowl team that I know no way to read it other than fudging.’
‘I think the NFL is obligated to act because the team clearly misled the public and the betting markets regarding the true status of Maye’s throwing shoulder.’
The controversy erupted during the post-game press conference when Maye was grilled about the state of his throwing shoulder and his ability to move the ball.
‘I shot it up, so not much feeling,’ Maye told ESPN’s Mike Reiss. ‘It was good to go, and it felt all right while I was out there playing against the Seahawks.’
Despite the ‘all right’ assessment, Maye’s performance on the field told a different story as he struggled to maintain consistency throughout the four quarters.
The young star turned the ball over three times, including a costly interception and a strip-sack that swung the momentum toward Seattle in the second half.
Maye’s performance on the field told a different story as he struggled to maintain consistency
When asked if the injury limited his play, Maye was hesitant to make excuses for the loss but admitted the injection was necessary for him to take the field.
‘I think it would be hard to say that. I was feeling good enough to be out there,’ he insisted when pushed on whether his accuracy was affected by the pain.
‘I wouldn’t put the team in harm’s way to not be myself. Just didn’t make plays tonight and that is on me as the leader of this offense,’ the quarterback added.
Official records show Maye was listed as a full participant in practice on the Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday leading up to the massive championship showdown.
By Saturday, his name had vanished from the injury report entirely, carrying no official designation into Sunday, which suggested he was at one hundred percent.
The league has yet to comment on whether the Patriots will face a formal inquiry or a significant fine for their handling of the star quarterback’s shoulder.