NASA administrator Jared Isaacman has fired back at Drake Maye after the New England Patriots quarterback questioned whether the Apollo 11 moon landing took place.
Maye appeared on WEEI on Monday after the Patriots’ impressive victory over the Buffalo Bills and questioned whether astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin really did set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969.
‘I don’t know about the moon, you know,’ he said. ‘I think I can see back in the day why we would put on the mask if we went there, but I’m not really sure 200 percent if we went there or not.
‘I wouldn’t say I’m leaning one way or the other. I just know I’m a little bit skeptical.’
Maye added that he took a course on conspiracy theories while he was a student at the University of North Carolina.
‘They studied [Adolf] Hitler being alive and, “Are birds real?” – some of the classic ones that you hear about,’ he added.
Patriots quarterback Drake Maye questioned whether the Apollo 11 moon landing took place
This image, taken by Neil Armstrong, shows Buzz Aldrin planting the US flag on the moon
NASA administrator Jared Isaacman fired back at Maye in a post on social media
Maye’s comments clearly caused frustration at NASA and prompted Isaacman to post a public response to his theory.
He replied to the video of Maye’s comments: ‘I quite literally have the receipts.’
Scientists have previously said the scientific equipment astronauts left behind, the 380kg of rock they brought back, and the 8,400 publicly available photos they took while they were there are enough proof to shut down any doubts Apollo 11 was real.
It comes after Maye and the Patriots produced their best performance of the season on Sunday to beat Josh Allen and their AFC East rivals in Buffalo.
Maye delivered by shaking off two first-half turnovers to finish with three touchdown passes – including Efton Chism´s one-handed catch with 1:50 remaining – in rallying New England to a 29-26 win.
The three touchdowns were two more than Maye combined for in New England losing two of its first three games to open the season. The 29 offensive points scored against Buffalo matched the Patriots’ total from their first three outings.
‘It´s relieving a little bit,’ said Maye, who was facing criticism after opening the season throwing six interceptions and losing a fumble. ‘I know I´ve got to play better and still left some stuff out there today. But we´ve got to build on it.’
Next up for Maye and the Patriots is a tough home game against the in-form Las Vegas Raiders.
