One Sack, Two Stars Hurt: Drake Maye and Aidan Hutchinson Both Go Down on the Same Play in Munich

The NFL's game in Germany was only a few minutes old when it turned into an afternoon of worry for both sidelines.

On New England's opening drive Sunday in Munich, Lions edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson came free on third down at the Detroit 15-yard line and brought Drake Maye down from behind, landing on the back of the quarterback's legs, CBS Sports and Fox News reported. The Patriots settled for a 33-yard field goal by Andy Borregales. It was the last good thing to happen to New England for a long while.

Maye was hurt on the play. So was the man who sacked him. Hutchinson jumped to celebrate, and when he landed his right knee buckled and he went down holding it, according to Fox News.

The Patriots first called Maye questionable to return with an ankle injury, then ruled him out before halftime. Tommy DeVito, his backup, took over the offense. In the early reports, neither the team nor the league gave a diagnosis or any sense of how long Maye might be out.

Hutchinson was checked in the sideline medical tent and then walked to the locker room, and the Lions listed him as questionable to return with a knee injury, CBS Sports reported. Detroit had not said anything about how serious it was in the first-half reports.

Losing two players like that on one snap is rare. One is the young quarterback New England has built its future around. The other is the pass rusher Detroit counts on to wreck an opponent's game plan.

Once the Patriots lost their quarterback, the Lions took over. Jared Goff found Isaac TeSlaa for a 12-yard touchdown, Detroit added a 56-yard touchdown, and Jahmyr Gibbs ran in from 5 yards out late in the second quarter, according to live coverage from Yahoo Sports and Pride of Detroit. The Boston Globe's live blog had Detroit up 14-3 in the first half, and the lead was 21-3 at the break.

DeVito did not have time to settle in. Yahoo Sports' live blog logged another three-and-out with him at quarterback as the half wound down.

New England was already shorthanded before kickoff. As we reported Saturday, running back TreVeyon Henderson went on injured reserve with an illness before the team left for Germany. Receiver A.J. Brown and running back Rhamondre Stevenson were both listed as questionable on Friday but were cleared to play, the Patriots' official website reported, and Brown had missed the two previous games with ankle and knee problems.

Lions fans have seen this before. Hutchinson broke the tibia and fibula in his left leg in 2024 and missed all but five games that season, Fox News noted. He came into Sunday with five sacks this year by Fox News' count, though one report put the total at six. This time it is the other leg, and the injury came from a celebration rather than a collision. That is the kind of moment that makes a stadium go quiet.

For New England, the bigger question is not this game but the weeks ahead. A franchise quarterback with an ankle injury can mean anything from a short rest to a long wait. Until the team says more, the Patriots will prepare as if DeVito might have to carry them for a while.

Football gives and takes in the same breath. Hutchinson did his job perfectly, beating a blocker and getting to the quarterback on a key down, and he got hurt celebrating it with his teammates. Maye stood in the pocket the way coaches want, and he paid for it. Neither man did anything wrong. Sometimes the game is simply cruel.

What I respect is how both locker rooms will answer. "Next man up" is a cliche because it is true. DeVito's job now is not to be a hero. It is to protect the ball, keep his team in the game and give his defense a chance. On the other side, Detroit's front will have to keep the pressure on without its best rusher.

Both of these young men have families waiting on good news, and both have worked too hard to have a season taken away in an instant. Here's praying the scans come back kind. What comes next is the medical news, likely in the next day or two, and that news will shape the AFC and NFC races as much as anything that happens on the field in Munich.