BOSTON — Drake Maye made his NFL debut for the Patriots on Thursday night, replacing veteran Jacoby Brissett late in the team’s game. 24-3 loss to the New York JetsCould permanent change be coming to New England?

Head coach Jerod Mayo declined to comment after the game.

“I don’t know. We talk about every week you’re competing for a job. We get together as a coaching staff and see how it goes,” Mayo said Thursday night.

There’s a good chance the Patriots will go straight back to Brissett. But Mayo and his staff have a week and a half to decide before the Patriots play the San Francisco 49ers in Week 4.

Drake Maye replaces Jacoby Brissett in the final stages of the loss to the Jets

After Brissett was sacked five times and managed just 98 passing yards against New York’s defense, Maye entered with 4:24 left in the fourth quarter with the Patriots trailing 24-3. His first NFL pass was nearly intercepted when he televised a throw to tight end Austin Hooper that nearly tripped Michael Carter. After a second-down handoff to Antonio Gibson yielded seven yards, Maye was taken down forcibly by Jamien Sherwood for a one-yard scramble.

Maye was sacked on a first-down drop back after the two-minute warning. He used his legs and scrambled for 11 yards on a fourth-and-8, and then, after three straight incompletions, connected with DeMario Douglas for 15 yards to keep the drive alive and get the Patriots to the New York 7-yard line.

But the drive — and the game — ended when Maye was sacked on first-and-goal. He completed four of his eight passes for 22 yards while scrambling for 12 yards on two carries in his professional debut.

Mayo said it was his decision to bring Maye in Thursday night. While he was concerned about the state of the offensive line, which gave up seven sacks and 15 QB hits that night, he saw an opportunity to get the rookie some action.

“Good opportunity for him to go with the ones and get some drives together. He moved the ball,” Mayo said of Maye. “We’re going to watch the film and evaluate it.”

Maye said he was ready when his number was called and was looking forward to the chance to make some plays.

“Get ready to go out there. No regrets, go out there and have some fun,” he said. “My first pass was tipped, so I’m glad it hit the ground.”

Jacoby Brissett reacts to Drake Maye playing against Jets

Brissett was asked about his replacement by Maye, and he was still as professional. Asked if he thinks the starting position is still his, Brissett replied “of course.”

“I don’t make personnel decisions. My job is to go out there and get ready to play, put good football on video and put my best foot forward,” he said.

Brissett was asked if Mayo would comment on his future starting quarterback, but declined to say much more.

“I’m not going to overreact to something I haven’t heard,” he said.

Maye complimented Brissett on his fighting spirit during Thursday’s match.

“He kept getting up every time. He threw some great balls tonight,” Maye said of Brissett. “I’m rooting for him. He’s a great teammate.”

Will this accelerate New England’s plans for Drake Maye?

The Patriots had planned to take it easy on their potential franchise quarterback, but now they may have to throw him into the fire given how lifeless the offense has been with Brissett at quarterback. The offensive line’s struggles, however, may keep Maye on the bench for a while longer.

The Patriots drafted Maye third overall out of North Carolina in April, and he showed a lot of growth during training camp and the preseason. He didn’t play much in New England’s preseason opener, completing two of his three passes for 19 yards. But he got some extended time on the field in the second preseason game, completing six of his 11 passes for 47 yards while adding a four-yard touchdown run on a nice read option.

In New England’s final preseason, Maye was 13 of 20 for 126 yards and a touchdown pass against the Washington Commanders. He finished his preseason 21 of 34 for 192 yards with one touchdown pass and one touchdown run.

While Brissett beat out Maye to become the team’s starting quarterback in Week 1, Mayo confirmed last week that Maye got about 30 percent of the reps with New England’s starters in practice. Mayo said backups typically only get about five percent of the snaps with starters, but the extended run with the team’s starters was part of Maye’s development plan.

Now we’ll see if that plan is accelerated to revitalize New England’s offense, or if concerns about the offensive line leave Maye in a safe position on the sidelines.