Patriots QB Drake Maye questionable to return with ankle injury vs. Lions in Munich

New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye is questionable to return to Sunday's Week 10 game against the Detroit Lions in Munich after hurting his ankle on the last play of the Patriots' opening drive. Tommy DeVito has taken over at quarterback. CBS Sports reported that the team announced the ankle injury and his status shortly after the drive ended.

Detroit edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson sacked Maye on third-and-goal, and both players came out of the play hurt. Maye limped afterward. He walked to the sideline on his own but was bent over in pain, and he later went to the locker room. Hutchinson seemed to hurt his knee while celebrating the sack, and the Lions also list him as questionable to return. As of this writing, neither team has said how serious either injury is.

The drive still ended in a Patriots field goal. Detroit answered right away on its first possession with a long touchdown to Amon-Ra St. Brown. Boston.com put the play at 56 yards and reported that Maye had started cleanly before he got hurt. He completed three of four passes for 48 yards and added an 11-yard run. A report from WFXT, carried by Yahoo Sports, also said the injury happened in the first quarter and that the team listed him as questionable.

What it means for New England

Maye is the starter, and the Patriots are built around him. They came to Germany at 5-4 after losing 45-27 at home to the Green Bay Packers. Their season has swung back and forth. A 1-2 start, which included a 35-6 loss at Jacksonville, gave way to three straight wins, among them a 29-26 win at Buffalo and a 45-17 win over Las Vegas. Since then they have split their last four games. A loss in Munich would drop them back to .500 with the season about half over.

For now the offense is in DeVito's hands. He came into the day as the only other quarterback available. Third-stringer Behren Morton was among New England's inactives, according to Yahoo Sports' live coverage. That leaves the Patriots with little room to maneuver if Maye can't come back. The same inactive list shows that the depth around him was already thin. Cornerback Carlton Davis, safety Brenden Schooler, center Ben Brown and two offensive tackles, Dametrious Crownover and Walter Rouse, were all ruled out before kickoff.

The Hutchinson injury matters for New England too. If Detroit's top pass rusher stays out, DeVito will face less pressure for whatever is left of the game, and so will Maye if he returns.

The main question for the rest of the afternoon is whether the medical staff clears Maye to play again. After that, the focus turns to what imaging shows about the ankle and whether it affects his availability next week. The Pats Empire Line will update his status as the team releases it.