If a kid takes his parents’ car for a joy ride and steers into an accident, you don’t blame the kid.

You blame mom and dad for handing him the keys.

Drake Maye steered the Patriots into a 20-17 loss Sunday in Tennessee. He got strip-sacked and threw two interceptions, including an overtime bomb that blew up in his face instead of detonating the Titans’ secondary and ended the game. But forgive Maye.

The Patriots handed him the keys knowing rookies fumble. And throw picks. And generally subject their teammates and coaches to a roller coaster of football highs and lows, and occasionally a loop or two. This is the ride they’ve chosen.

The difference between Maye and most rookies is the Patriots have not only asked him to drive, but serve as their engine and airbags. Maye’s arm is Plan A, his instincts are Plan B, and if any other part of the offense breaks down, his legs become Plan C. You saw it all on Sunday.

Maye bailed his offensive line out of multiple sacks against the NFL’s No. 1 pass defense. He rushed for 95 yards, while his next closest teammate had 16. In the first half, his off-schedule playmaking generate half of the the Patriots’ total yards, and that same creativity later pushed them into overtime.

Dodging, ducking, dipping and darting around the pocket, Maye held the ball for more than 11 seconds on the last play of regulation, which will go into the history books as a five-yard touchdown pass to Rhamondre Stevenson. But a more apt description would be the NFL’s second-longest pass play of the last eight years. Or an atypical display of calm and playmaking from a rookie who also got clobbered as he delivered the ball.

“I think that’s the greatest thing about Drake: he’s doing things that you don’t really see at a young age,” Pats wide receiver Kendrick Bourne told reporters. “So I’m very excited. And I want to be better for him. I think everybody understands in our offensive room, that we have something in him that can make everybody better. … That’s somebody you want to follow.”

Three years ago, the Patriots followed another rookie quarterback lauded for his toughness. But if there’s any doubt that Maye’s play is more impressive than what Mac Jones managed in his first year, considering their respective surrounding casts, ask yourself this: where would the Patriots be with Jones right now?

New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) throws a pass that was intercepted by the Tennessee Titans to end the game in overtime in an NFL football game in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

The answer is nowhere. Or the same place they were with Brissett, another pocket-bound point guard with a clear ceiling. Because Jones ultimately broke under less pressure than Maye is facing; someone who had the backing of a top-10 defense and functioning running game during his entire New England tenure.

Maye has neither. He has himself, and the least talented offense in the NFL. Plus, an offensive coaching staff that has Patriots fans longing for the days of Josh McDaniels. Or hell, even Matt Patricia.

Kidding. Mostly.

Coaching decisions, like starting fourth-round rookie guard Layden Robinson opposite Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, a two-time Pro Bowler, continue to confound on a weekly basis. The Pats chose to make room for Robinson by kicking Mike Onwenu back to right tackle this week, only to ask him to replace the rookie before halftime. Predictably, Simmons ate Robinson up, tallying one pressure and drawing a holding penalty on the first drive alone.

This is the pocket the Pats have built for Maye. He overcomes anyway.

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“The guy’s special, man,” Pats tight end Hunter Henry told reporters. “Just the way he competes, the way he plays, the way he continues to fight. I’m excited to continue to go out there and play with him. He’s very special, got a lot of talent.”

Of course, special does not mean perfect, nor excused from scrutiny. The rookie blanket can only cover for Maye for so long. He admitted post-game his final pick was a “dumb decision.” He’s right, and he got away with a couple other passes that bounced off Titans hands.

That luck won’t last forever.

But the dumbest decision would be to ask more of Maye. The Patriots, by hook or by crook, must unlock their run game and plug holes in their pass protection. Take the keys, let him ride shotgun for a while.

Maye is the future of this franchise. Even as he hung his head after throwing a pick that threw the game away, that future looked a little brighter on Sunday.