FOXBOROUGH, Mass – Ahead of the New England Patriots' Week 6 matchup against an impressive Houston Texans team, head coach Jerod Mayo decided to make a major change. 

And that was turning to Drake Maye. 

While the team did suffer a harsh loss, the rookie quarterback showed a lot of promise. And it should give fans hope for the future. 

After the game, many of Maye's teammates were asked about his first NFL start. 

And the best answer came from DeMario Douglas, who caught his first NFL touchdown from the rookie. 

"He’s got that swag," Douglas said. "I’ll run through a wall for him.”

Douglas had a career day, finishing with six receptions for 92 yards and a touchdown. Considering he's one of the Patriots' best weapons, it was encouraging to see him connecting with Maye. 

“He played good," Douglas explained about Maye's overall performance. "I love how he gained confidence throughout the game and I thought it was a good first game for him. He’s [a good player] and I like the confidence that he had going into his first game. They are a good team and he held his own. We have a young offense, and we are making progress. Our first game together as a young offense and I felt like we should be moving forward after this game.”

“Like I said, he has that confidence and never was down," he added. "When you have a [quarterback] that is never down, it gives us confidence. He came into the huddle saying, ‘come on, let’s go’ and pushed us to be like ‘we got your back.’”

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Douglas wasn't the only one to speak so highly of Maye, so here's what some of his other teammates had to say: 

WR Kayshon Boutte

Maye's first touchdown pass of the day was a 40-yard bomb, perfectly placed for Kayshon Boutte who made the grab and got into the end zone. 

“Going into the second quarter, we didn’t have momentum from the first quarter. A couple of three-and-outs, back-to-back-to-back," Boutte said when asked about what led up to the scoring play. "Defenses start sitting on routes when we weren’t throwing it deep. 

"I went to Coach and I was like, ‘we need to take a shot, I want the ball.’ That was the opportunity, and it presented itself. Drake threw a great ball. Great pass from him.” 

Having been a rookie not so long ago, the second-year receiver was always willing to help Maye. It started during training camp. 

“When Drake first came in – I was once a rookie – it’s all about getting comfortable, finding your confidence and your rhythm," Boutte told reporters. "From the time he got in, going in and out every day, just letting him know it’ll be alright, that we all can improve to get better.”

WR Kendrick Bourne

“I think he did phenomenal," Bourne said. "I pointed out that him getting hit, he kept playing, he didn’t seem too rattled. He didn’t just start doing different things, he stuck to what he does, what he practices. 

"I think he understands that he’s going to get hit and I think that is huge. Obviously, we’re struggling on the line as everybody knows, in a sense, but he’s doing a good job playing hard.”

And with that, Maye also helped spark the passing game. 

“I think AVP [Alex Van Pelt] did a great job. His game plan," Bourne explained. "Pop [Demario Douglas] had a great day, Boutte had a great day. Just scheming, kind of anticipating what they’re going to do. Pop was kind of that tough spot for them on the defense, he ran some really good routes. I think we schemed well, and Drake threw the ball really good.”

Mayo said that the team had a renewed energy this week. And a lot of that comes from what Maye can bring to the offense. 

“The way he was running the ball was impressive," Bourne said. "I think his athleticism, his ability to throw on the run and things like that. It’s how he runs with his body, like he’s running left, but facing forward to throw the ball. I think those traits are what you see around the league. Patrick Mahomes, these new age quarterbacks, throwing the ball on the run, extending plays.”

And he had no problem commanding the huddle. 

“Yeah, he’s like a natural leader, he has aura," the veteran wide receiver told reporters. "That’s important in football. Some people have aura, some people don’t, so he’s kind of one of those. He doesn’t have to try, he’s that guy. It’s important, you can tell when you see him. He passed the eye test, so when he’s in the huddle, he knows what he’s doing. You can feel it, it’s important.”

TE Hunter Henry

Henry was another player who was on the receiving end of one of Maye's touchdown passes. And he also had only good things to say about the rookie. 

“He’s super athletic. He’s very mobile, so you’ve got to be ready at all times, any route to be able to kind of convert into a scramble drill kind of mode," Henry said. "In that moment, he was able to just kind of find me and make a play. He’s a playmaker; he’s a great player, and he’s only going to continue to get better.”

And there was also one part of his game that really impressed the captain. 

“I commend his toughness, first and foremost," the tight end explained. His competitiveness was great. It was fun to get some things going, moving in a positive direction. I felt like the two-minute before the half was a great moment for us, too, as an offense. We’ve just got to be better with the football, we’ve got to be better – we weren’t able to establish the run like we wanted to today, and we’ve just got to be better in a lot of areas. It starts with myself. I need to be better and be better for this football team.”

When asked to speak more about Maye's toughness, Henry didn't hesitate. 

“Well, I mean, it’s a big moment, first and foremost. Your first game, your first start. He got hit a few times early, he threw an interception early and just continued to come back, continued to fight, continued to get back up and continued to play at a high level, too," he added. "As a young player, to be able to bounce back like that, I think it’s more even the mentally tough than maybe some of the physically tough. I know how hard it can be. 

"You have something not go your way early in the game, but to continue to fight, get back up and keep going, I commend him on that.”

RB Antonio Gibson

The run game struggled on Sunday. 

Maye finished as the team's top rusher with three carries for 30 yards, while Antonio Gibson had 12 carries for 22 yards. 

“Excited for him. You know, he came out here, he competed," Gibson told reporters. "Not what we wanted, but he did his thing. He showed heart. He took the steps he needed to do to prepare for today. We just have to keep building off of that.”

And with that, he saw the rookie's confidence grow. 

“I feel like it was a slow start, but you know, he got going," he said. "That was a great pass by him, and I feel like he got more comfortable. Unfortunate things happened and they weren’t going our way, but it is something to build off of. He came out here, and like I said, he competed his ass off, especially with the runs he had, extending the drives for us. 

"We’re proud of him.”

CB Jonathan Jones

Similar to what Mayo alluded to in his postgame press conference, Jonathan Jones put the blame on the defense when asked about Maye's first start. 

“I think we didn’t put him in a good position, you know, as a defense, spotting them 14 points," Jones said. "So, it’s kind of hard to fight back from that. So, from that standpoint, you know, it’s hard.”