CHICAGO - Drake Maye and Caleb Williams gave Thursday Night Football exactly what the matchup promised.
Their second meeting was a clear step up from the first one two seasons ago, and this time the young quarterbacks put on a show before Williams and the Bears pulled out a 30-24 win in the final moments.
Maye finished 24-for-31 with 347 total yards and three total touchdowns, including two through the air and one on the ground. He kept New England in it from start to finish, even if the Patriots couldn’t close the door.
“Shoulda, woulda, coulda,” Maye told reporters postgame. “I'm proud of the guys for the effort. I think we did some good things, we've got a lot of stuff to clean up.”
The one play he would want back came in the first half. On a throw meant for rookie Eli Raridon in the end zone, Maye didn’t put enough air under the ball and Bears linebacker D'Marco Jackson came away with the interception. It was Maye’s third interception in the end zone this season, the most in the NFL.
Still, the bigger story was how often he answered. He kept the Patriots offense moving, and his teammates made it clear they know what he brings.
“Drake's a competitor, man,” tight end Hunter Henry said in the locker room. “That's what he does. We always got a chance when 10's back there, that's for sure.”
“He did a great job extending plays,” A.J. Brown, who caught three passes in the loss, said. “He did great.”
On the other sideline, Williams was just as sharp, maybe sharper when the Bears needed it most. He went 22-for-33 for 308 yards and two touchdown passes, avoided a turnover, and kept extending plays until Chicago found openings.
Williams completed eight passes of 20-plus yards, tied for the most by any quarterback in 2026, and repeatedly used his legs and arm talent to stress the Patriots defense. He hit Rome Odunze on a pair of first downs that helped wear down New England’s secondary, and he kept forcing defenders to deal with what Christian Gonzalez called “the second play.”
“We talked about it all week,” Gonzalez said. “He's very gifted with how he can run and how he can extend plays. ...
You gotta defend the second play. There's a play and then there's a second play with a quarterback like Caleb.”
“Anytime a quarterback that's as mobile as him gets out of the pocket, they definitely put stress on the DBs,” Charles Woods told Patriots On SI. “It's definitely difficult, but that's what we signed up.”
Williams didn’t rack up huge rushing numbers, finishing with 18 yards on the ground, but the scrambling still mattered. He rolled out to find Colston Loveland for a 12-yard touchdown in the third quarter, then escaped the pocket again for key conversions late in the fourth. In the end, he was the winner in Week 7, and he earned it.
Walter Rouse, who made his first start of the season at left guard, said the Patriots liked having Maye behind center for this kind of fight.
“I just appreciate we have him back there and (to) be able to block for him,” Rouse told Patriots On SI. “Drake's an awesome, great guy.”
Mike Vrabel said the loss wasn’t what the Patriots wanted, but he liked the way his quarterback battled.
“He gave us a chance,” Vrabel said. “He competed. ...
He'll learn from it like he always does. I'm glad he's ours.”
If this is the kind of stage Maye and Williams are going to share moving forward, the league should be ready. This one had the tempo, the talent and the shot-making to match the hype at Soldier Field.
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