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NASA chief answers Patriots QB Drake Maye's doubts about Moon landings

Patriots quarterback Drake Maye said on a Boston radio show he is "a little bit skeptical" the US landed on the Moon. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman replied on X that he "quite literally" has "the receipts".

2 outlets · 1L · 0C · 1R First reported Account updated
Image: The Independent
Image: Fox News

1 / 2

The story, neutrally told

Mixed · 2New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye said on Monday, on WEEI Sports Radio in Boston, that he is "a little bit skeptical" about whether the US landed on the Moon. Mixed · 2Asked by a fan to name a conspiracy theory they secretly believe in, Maye said: "I’m not really sure 200% if we went there or not. I wouldn’t say I’m leaning one way or the other." Right · 1Maye also said they took a conspiracy theories class at the University of North Carolina, where the topics included Hitler being alive and whether birds are real, according to Fox News.

Mixed · 2NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, a billionaire entrepreneur and commercial astronaut who became the agency's 15th administrator in December 2025, replied on X on Wednesday: "I quite literally have the receipts." Mixed · 2The theory holds that NASA staged the Apollo landings; one version, raised in the interview, says director Stanley Kubrick helped fake them. The Independent says there is no credible evidence of Kubrick's involvement. Right · 1Fox News says scientists, historians and independent experts have dismissed the theory, citing Apollo moon rocks confirmed as lunar by laboratories including those in the Soviet Union, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter photos of the landing sites, and the more than 400,000 people who worked on Apollo.

Left · 1The Independent notes other athletes have questioned the landings, including William Hayes (2017), A.J. Brown (2023) and Dallas Goedert, and Stephen Curry, who said in 2022 he had been joking. Mixed · 2Maye's comments came after their best game of the 2026 season, a 29-26 win over the Buffalo Bills in which they threw for 269 yards and three touchdowns. The Patriots host the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.

Left1 outlet

Framing
Light human-interest piece that treats Isaacman's reply as humorous and places Maye in a line of athletes who have questioned the landings.
Emphasis
Isaacman's background, the history of athlete skeptics, and a flat statement that there's no credible evidence for the Kubrick theory.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not list the physical evidence (moon rocks, orbiter photos) against the theory or mention Maye's university conspiracy class.
Charged language
“hilarious response”
For example
“NASA chief has hilarious response to NFL player who doubts whether astronauts really landed on the Moon” — The Independent
“There is no credible evidence that Kubrick was involved in staging the moon landing.” — The Independent

Centre0 outlets

No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.

Right1 outlet

Framing
OutKick sports-culture piece that opens with Maye joining those unsure about the landing and then rebuts the theory with evidence.
Emphasis
Maye's UNC conspiracy class, the evidence against the theory (moon rocks, orbiter photos, 400,000 workers) and the Patriots' next game.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not mention the earlier athletes who questioned the landings or Isaacman's background.
Charged language
“fire back”“overwhelming evidence”
For example
“prompting NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman to fire back.” — Fox News
“despite the overwhelming evidence otherwise” — Fox News