Patriots rookie QB Drake Maye stands on the sidelines Thursday night with the New England executive who drafted him, Eliot Wolf. (AP photo)

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The Great Drake Debate will continue to rage on.

Here are some looks at that plus other takeaways as to where the New England Patriots are after Thursday night’s preseason debut:

First, when will we sound a MayeDay? The fact that Maye only played one series will be discussed ad nauseum until next Thursday’s second game of the preseason vs. the Eagles at Gillette Stadium.

The Patriots set a plan for the other night and stuck with it. A series each for who they likely perceive as their top two QBs, veteran starter Jacoby Brissett and the third overall pick Maye, and then a heavy dose of veteran Bailey Zappe and another rookie, Joe Milton III, who stole the show going 4 of 6 for 54 yards and a TD and rushing five times for 22 yards. But there are many who wonder why Maye didn’t play more and Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo was asked about that on Friday.

“Going into the game, I talked to AVP (Alex Van Pelt), (Ben) McAdoo, and the entire offensive staff about what’s the plan for the quarterback,” Mayo said. “This conversation has been ongoing, and so this has always been the plan to develop these guys this way.

“We’ll see how it looks going forward. It won’t always be the same because we’re still evaluating everyone on the roster, especially the quarterbacks.”

And then Mayo added, “I expect Drake to get more reps than he did in the first game against the Eagles.”

Thursday night Mayo indicated one reason to limit Maye was the fact he was playing behind the second string offensive line, but Carolina wasn’t nearly a defensive juggernaut up front. But Mayo says the plan has been laid out and he isn’t pushing yet to veer from it.

“Yeah, each one of these quarterbacks has an individual development plan that I’ve gone over with AVP and the rest of his staff,” he said, “and we’re sticking to that plan until it’s time to change.”

Unless they do the unusual and keep four quarterbacks, either Zappe or Milton will have to go.

Maye though, didn’t seem too frustrated after the game, because he was thrilled just to be in the stadium in front of fans, the first time he said he stepped into the stadium since the day after he was drafted.

“So for me just kind of an idea of how much I played tonight and just going there and trying to take care of the football and execute,” he said, “and other than that just fun to be out there.”

The Patriots are going to take their sweet time with this kid, whether anyone likes it or not. But keep your eyes on Milton, but do remember that the preseason is not something to base things on.

—- One thing about this quarterback room, one could see, especially after the game, that these quarterbacks really work well together, for whatever that’s worth. It may be worth a lot considering the visible animosity between Mac Jones and Zappe last year. How many times do you see a player applaud another player for his words on the postgame podium, and not in jest?

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— The other battle to really keep an eye on just got more interesting on Friday when the Patriots released veteran JuJu Smith Schuster. It’s clear that draft picks Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker will make the 53-man, and likely so will veteran K.J. Osborn and second year receiver DeMario Douglas, the latter of whom did not play the other night. There’s four.

The remaining battle will be between second-year Kayshon Boutte, who caught 3 of 6 for 53 yards Thursday; Tyquan Thornton, whose speed is tantalizing but overall play far from it; and veteran Jalen Reagor. And don’t forget about veteran Kendrick Bourne, who could be on PUP to start the season as he recovers from that torn ACL. We say Boutte makes the team, Thornton gets waived with the hope of putting him on the practice squad.

Polk is a favorite of Mayo, so expect him to be a contributor to the offense when the lights go on for real.

“I’ve always been a huge fan of Polk, even in college because first of all, he’s able to do the dirty work as a receiver, and those guys are hard to find,” Mayo said. “But he’s one of those guys that I’m just excited to see his development and growth.

“Obviously, he can run great routes. He blocks. He can catch the ball, and then he’ll run after the catch. So, I think it’s important for him and also [Javon] Baker to go out there and get a good amount of reps because we’re going to depend on those guys going forward.”

Brandon who?

—- Hard to believe, but Thursday night was the first New England Patriots game without Bill Belichick on the sidelines – preseason, regular season, or postseason – since Jan. 2, 2000, when Pete Carroll coached his final game for the Patriots vs. the Ravens at old Foxboro Stadium before being fired the next day after an 8-8 season.

But no butterflies for Mayo.

“There was more excitement,” he said. “It was almost like you get on a roller coaster and you just hear that click, like, click, click. And then you get to the top and it kind of is go time. I mean, at this point you’re so far along we have nowhere else to go.

“I wouldn’t say butterflies, just excitement and pure joy, honestly.”

Still, it was certainly different not seeing Belichick either with or without a headset, writing notes, etc.

—- Meanwhile, if a rookie free agent makes the team, look at special teamer David Wallis, technically a receiver out of Randolph Macon. He had two punt returns for 37 yards and the Patriots have tried several at that spot.

“He did a great job,” Mayo said. “He’s back there catching punts and things like that. He’s an explosive player. Honestly, he’s had a pretty good camp. He’s a hard guy to cover, and I’m glad he showed up last night in the special teams room. He’s a hard worker, and that’s all you can ask for.”

He’s someone to keep an eye on the rest of the preseason, to see how many more opportunities he gets.

—– Finally, the release of Smith-Schuster shows the huge mistake it was to sign him and let Jakobi Meyers move on as a free agent, signing with Las Vegas. Basically, Belichick, as the tale goes, took the advice of his staff and bought damaged goods. Smith-Schuster has a bad knee and was not the same receiver he was with the Steelers or even in his brief stay with Kansas City, who let him walk. Ouch. One of the glaring examples of why Belichick is no longer with the Patriots.