Drake Maye looks on as the Patriots practice. Nancy Lane/Boston Herald

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye appears to be progressing through the NFL’s concussion protocol.

On Wednesday, Maye wasn’t present for the beginning of practice but was expected to participate for 30 minutes or less, according to Coach Jerod Mayo, and was officially listed as “limited,” indicating the rookie was in Phase 3 of the protocol.

He was present for the beginning of practice Thursday and was spotted throwing. That could indicate that the Patriots expect him to practice longer than 30 minutes, which would put him in Phase 4.

Offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt said the Patriots would be “open-minded” with the offensive game plan this week since it’s out of their control whether Maye or Jacoby Brissett starts at quarterback. New England (2-6) takes on Tennessee (1-6) at 1 p.m. Sunday.

“Very hopeful that things keep going the way they’re trending,” Van Pelt said.

Maye impressed with his arm and legs before exiting the Patriots’ Week 8 win over the Jets with a concussion. He was 3 of 6 for 36 yards passing, but two of his incompletions were drops. He also scrambled three times for 46 yards with a touchdown.

“He’s getting better every week,” Van Pelt said. “Decision-making is exceptional. He knows where to go with the football. Some of the stuff he does in practice, understanding where he’s going to be hot, how to handle some of the pressure issues, that gets better every week. The throws down the field in practice, the accuracy he shows on some of the deeper throws, that’s been there and continues to be there. Just the maturation of a young quarterback, finding something to get better at every week. I thought there were some areas that he could improve on from the London game, and we addressed those during the week. Expect to see those show up as we continue.”

MATHIS STEPS UP: It didn’t take long for the Patriots to fill the void left on their 53-man roster when they traded away pass rusher Josh Uche to the Chiefs.

It also didn’t take much thought.

The Patriots had already elevated outside linebacker Ochaun Mathis from their practice squad to the 53-man roster the maximum three times. So, one day after trading away Uche, they signed Mathis to the 53-man roster so they could continue using him in games.

Forty of Mathis’ 45 total snaps this season have come on special teams, but the Patriots are light on depth at defensive end and outside linebacker, so Mathis will likely see more time on defense through the rest of the season.

“I’m really excited,” Mathis told the Boston Herald this week. “I just feel like there’s not many words to describe it, because once you’re an emotion, you’re just an emotion. It’s just getting to the next step. At the end of the day, I’m just excited to be able to be utilized on the field, wherever I need to be, just to help this team win.”

Mathis came into the NFL with the Rams as a sixth-round pick out of Nebraska. The 6-foot-5, 250-pound edge defender began his college career at TCU before transferring to the Cornhuskers for his redshirt senior season.

Mathis listed his length – he has massive 35 1/4-inch tree trunks for arms – as one of the strengths of his game.

“I’m resilient. I’m really good on the edge when it comes to getting flexible and getting low underneath someone’s pads with explosive legs and long arms to come with it,” Mathis said. “I feel like that’s just a caliber a lot of guys would like to have, which is long arms and tall stature and able to get low. I’m very explosive getting off the ball. Just all that comes together. It just creates something I can just do on every Sunday and go out there and perform at the end of the day.”

Added defensive captain Deatrich Wise, “Every day, he’s the same person. Comes in every day, works super hard, learns the playbook really fast, knows what to do, when to do it, how to do it. And high energy guy, as well, on the sideline, always cheering. On the field bullies anybody who’s in his way, so always good to see that.”

Patriots coaches said this week that Mathis has impressed them with his note-taking off the field and his combination of length and athleticism off it.

“Those don’t come out of the sky,” outside linebackers coach Drew Wilkins said Thursday. “Like, those guys are rare.”

Mathis, who signed to the Patriots’ practice squad on Aug. 30, said it was a blessing to be signed to the Patriots’ 53-man roster. He called his girlfriend back home, then his dad, then his mom, who had already heard the good news.

His father, Bruce, is battling Stage 4 kidney failure, so Mathis makes it a point to include him in the big moments in his career.

“Right now I’m trying to do my best to let him know everything I’m doing,” Mathis said. “Because you never know at the end of the day. I just try to use every spectacular moment and just include him on a lot of things. He really appreciates it. It’s just something a good son would do for his dad.”

Bruce isn’t able to travel, but he watches the Patriots at home and sends Ochaun texts during the game, even though the 25-year-old outside linebacker isn’t able to check them.

“He’s always there, and he’s letting me know that every chance I get,” Mathis said.