Ten Takeaways From Patriots 19-3 Win Over the Bears

The New England Patriots were coming off a disappointing overtime loss to the Tennessee Titans entering Sunday’s showdown with the Chicago Bears. The Bears know firsthand how difficult it can be to recover from a tough defeat. Chicago lost to Washington two weeks ago on a Hail Mary as time expires. They followed up that game by being blown out 29-9 by the Arizona Cardinals in Week 9.

New England hoped to ride the wave of their comeback to send the Tennessee game to OT instead of the final result. Chicago had a 4-4 record and needed a win to remain confident about having playoff aspirations in 2024.

In a battle of rookie quarterbacks, New England’s Drake Maye didn’t play great but was good enough to beat Chicago and first-overall pick Caleb Williams. The Patriots generated enough offense to get the job done. Thanks to their defensive performance, not much was needed. New England took advantage of Chicago’s injuries along the offensive line and produced a season-high nine sacks.

Also Read – Hunter Henry Headlines 2024 Patriots Mid-Season Awards

Ten takeaways from the Patriots 19-3 win over the Bears in Week 10:

Ugly Start to the Game

New England received to start the game. Unfortunately, things could not have gone any worse for them without a turnover. The offense went three-and-out on the opening drive. DeAndre Carter returned Bryce Baringer’s punt 38 yards for a net gain of only 11 yards for the Patriots.

The Patriots were fortunate that the Bears opening possession was equally inept. A three-and-out opening drive forced Chicago to punt from New England’s 47-yard line. Tory Taylor shanked a 13-yard punt out of bounds, and the Patriots got the ball back at their 34-yard line. Both teams had a chance to reset and start over with 11:45 remaining in the first quarter.

Patriots Put Points On the Board

New England wasted no time taking advantage of getting the ball back. On the first play, Drew Maye connected with Austin Hooper on a beautiful throw and catch for a 28-yard gain. The Patriots opted against playing conservative, converting a first down on fourth-and-one from the Chicago 18. Three plays later, Maye connected with K.J. Osborn in the end zone. It was an outstanding play by Maye to keep the play alive and find his target, but Osborn had stepped out of bounds before catching the ball, making it an illegal touch penalty. The Patriots settled for a 30-yard Joey Slye field goal and a 3-0 lead.

Drake to Hoop for a big gain and a first down!

📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/9HFuJWkMK1

— New England Patriots (@Patriots) November 10, 2024

Drake Maye’s Decision Making

The Patriots rookie QB made his worst decision of the day on the possession after Slye’s field goal. He threw a pass along the sideline into tight coverage, which was intercepted by Bears linebacker T.J. Edwards. Fortunately for New England, it was Maye’s only turnover of the day, though not his only poor decision.

Takeaway T.J. 🙌

📺: #NEvsCHI on FOX pic.twitter.com/XsCUVZ5DT1

— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) November 10, 2024

The biggest concern for Maye on Sunday was not ball security, however. Rather, it was his own health security. He needs to learn to slide and avoid unnecessary hits. While it is going to be part of the package of being a mobile playmaker to some degree, there were times when fighting for an extra yard was unnecessary. Maye needs to figure out the risk-reward balance of not giving himself up earlier moving forward. New England needs him healthy.

Two Emerge From Doghouse in the Second Quarter

Chicago easily moved the ball downfield on their first possession of the second quarter. New England’s defense held once the Bears got into the red zone though. Nice defensive plays by Jeremiah Pharms Jr. and Brenden Schooler, who saw time at safety on Sunday, kept held the Bears to three points.

New England offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt showed off some solid playcalling on the Patriots’ next possession. After Chicago went 50 yards on 12 plays to kick a field goal, New England drove 70 yards on 10 plays and scored a touchdown. The Patriots combined five passes with five runs, culminating in Drake Maye finding Ja’Lynn Polk for a two-yard touchdown.

Drake Maye to Ja’Lynn Polk for the rookie to rookie TD connection #NEPats

📺: #NEvsCHI on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/rallRsqNss

— NFL (@NFL) November 10, 2024

It was the Patriots’ only touchdown drive of the day, and Polk’s lone reception, but it was a positive result for two of the men criticized the most in New England’s locker room this season.

Deflated Bears

Polk scored with only 1:46 remaining in the first half. Chicago got the ball back and was forced to punt less than a minute later, with 47 seconds remaining. Marcus Jones fielded the punt at New England’s 16-yard line and returned it 24 yards out to their 40. With only 35 seconds left and a seven-point lead, it would have been easy for New England to play it conservatively. It is a criticism the coaching staff has received several times this season.

New England instead aired it out. Maye connected for gains to DeMario Douglas and Kayshon Boutte, moving the ball to the Chicago 24-yard line. Maye was able to spike the ball with a second remaining, which caused an offsides call on Chicago. Joey Slye kicked a 37-yard field goal as time expired for a 13-3 lead.

The final score visibly deflated the Bears, who had awful body language exiting the field at halftime. They looked like a losing team, something Patriots fans have seen from their team at times this season. Halftime was an opportunity for them to reground and come out fighting in the second half. However, it aslo put pressure on theri offense to do something to start the second half and prove the tone had shifted.

Punts Galore

The amount of offense to start the second half was close to zero. The more time that came off the clock, the less likely Chicago seemed to make a comeback. On that “must score” possession to start the second half, they went three-and-out. It started a trend of punting. Unfortunately for New England, their offense wasn’t doing anything, either. The creative and aggressive play calling from the second quarter was gone. The first seven possessions of the second half (four for the Bears, three for the Patriots) ended in punts.

The half began with Chicago on offense at their 30-yard line down 13-3. Seven possessions later, New England had the ball on their 46-yard line, leading 13-3 with 13:33 left in regulation. It felt like one score for the Bears would get them back in the game, or one by the Patriots would put it away. Finally, New England kicked a field goal on the eighth possession of the second half to increase their lead to 16-3.

New England’s Offensive Line Impresses

The New England Patriots want to be a “run-first” team, especially with a lead. Their offensive line has made it difficult to establish a consistent ground game. New England ran the ball 35 times for 144 yards. They nearly doubled Chicago’s rushing total of 73 yards.

The Patriots offensive line allowed one sack in the first quarter but pitched. shutout otherwise. It was a very solid performance for a unit that desperately needed it. For all the reasons Jerod Mayo referred to his team as being soft after the Jacksonville loss, the opposite was true against Chicago.

New England’s Sack Attack

Patriots Got Their Man

One subplot of today’s game was the rookie quarterbacks. The Chicago Bears selected Caleb Williams No. 1 overall int he 2024 NFL Draft. The New England Patriots drafted Drake Maye No. 3 overall. It is possible that Maye was third on New England’s draft board, but at least in Week 10 of their rookie seasons it looked like the Patriots lucked out by having Maye fall into their lap.

Caleb Williams completed 16 of 30 passes, for 120 yards, no touchdowns, no interceptions, and was sacked nine times. He ran twice for 15 yards.

Drake Maye completed 15 of 25 passes for 184 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and was sacked once. He ran four times for 24 yards. Most importantly, the Patriots QB left the field with a win.

Three Areas for Improvement

After a convincing win, there is no need to dwell on the Patriots’ negatives from the game. That said, a few things stood out that need cleaning up. As mentioned above, Drake Maye needs to stop absorbing avoidable contact. His health is of primary importance.

New England’s wide receivers need to get more aggressive when catching the ball. DeMario Douglas had a drop in the first quarter when he appeared to anticipate contact. This has been true of deep passes as well, where receivers (Kayshon Boutte today) wait for the ball to come to them, seemingly unaware that a defender is attacking the ball at the same time.

Finally, the Patriots punt coverage continues to be troublesome. Many aspects of the special teams unit have improved greatly in 2024, including Joey Slye’s reliable field goal kicking and Marcus Jones’ punt returns. But New England needs to get better at covering punts. Jeremy Springer must identify if the problem is with Bryce Baringer’s punt, the coverage scheme, or undisciplined coverage. Whatever the cause, it needs fixing.

New England Patriots Stars of the Game

First Star – Jeremiah Pharms, Jr. (5 tackles, 3 TFL, 1.0 sack)

Second Star – Anfernee Jennings (4 tackles, 2.0 sacks)

Third Star – Jahlani Tavai (9 tackles, 1.0 sack, PBU)

There were many New England Patriots players who could have earned a star of the game on Sunday. Deatrich Wise Jr. had two sacks, the entire secondary and offensive line played excellently, and Rhamondre Stevenson was a workhorse. Having too many stars for the three honors is a change for the 2024 Patriots, one they hope continues.