DRAKE MAYE THREW THREE PICKS IN ONE QUARTER AND GIFT-WRAPPED SEATTLE THE OPENER

Seattle opened its title defense Wednesday night at Lumen Field, Richard Sherman raised the 12th Man flag, and then the defending champs spent three quarters looking like they left the offense in the parking lot. Sam Darnold's night lasted five plays. He took a sack, limped to the medical tent and then the locker room, and finished with 13 yards and a hip injury with no timetable to return. Drew Lock came on and did nothing for a half. New England led 7-0 at the break and pushed it to 10-0 on a 50-yard Andres Borregales field goal in the third. Seattle had three points through three quarters. All the Patriots had to do was sit on it. Instead Drake Maye handed the game over in installments. He threw interceptions on New England's final three possessions, all of them in the fourth quarter, the first three-pick game of his career and a hell of a follow-up to a season where he nearly won MVP. Pick one set up Lock's 45-yard game-tying strike to Jaxon Smith-Njigba on fourth down. Pick two set up the Jason Myers field goal that put Seattle ahead 13-10 with 5:53 left. Pick three was the worst. New England had a short field goal available to tie, and Maye lofted one into the end zone that Josh Jobe caught with both feet in bounds and 26 seconds on the clock. A.J. Brown's Patriots debut ended in the third quarter with an ankle injury, so nobody from New England got out of Seattle clean.

Why you should give a shit: Seattle won the rematch with its backup quarterback and 13 total points, so the problem in New England isn't the talent, it's that Maye spent the entire fourth quarter completing passes to the wrong roster.