Thursday night in New England brings the kind of quarterback matchup that still feels fresh because it is. Caleb Williams and Drake Maye, the first and third picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, are meeting for the first time since Roger Goodell announced their names, and the spotlight is squarely on two passers who were drafted to define franchises.
Williams and the Bears are coming off a needed reset in Atlanta. After getting hammered 31-7 by Green Bay in Week 5, Chicago returned from its bye-week-like bounceback mindset and handled the Falcons 31-23, with Williams back under center and looking like himself again.
The Bears had plenty to like in that win. Williams finished 30 of 36 for 305 yards with 1 TD and no interceptions, showing the sharpness and command that made him such a rare prospect.
The questions around his hamstring injury from Week 2 against the Minnesota Vikings faded quickly once he started carving up Atlanta. He looked accurate, calm and mobile, and Chicago’s offense looked far more dangerous with him driving it.
That matters here because the Bears are going to need every bit of that version of Williams to keep pace. He’ll be trying to get the ball to Rome Odunze, Luther Burden and tight end Colston Loveland, a trio that can make life miserable for any defense. Burden and Loveland were two of his go-to targets last year, and they could be tough for New England to contain.
But the Patriots have been playing like a team that found its footing fast. They stumbled early with losses in two of their first three games, yet they’ve now won three straight and look dialed in on both sides of the ball. Much of that turnaround has come with Maye playing at a high level again.
Maye threw for 235 yards and three touchdown passes in his last game, and after dealing with turnovers early in the season, he’s been clean over the last three weeks. His TD-interception line in that stretch is 10-1, and he didn’t throw picks against either the Raiders or the Jets.
The Patriots’ defense has been a big reason this surge feels real. They’re giving up 18.8 points per game, which ranks fifth in the league, and Christian Gonzalez gives them one of the best cornerbacks in football on the back end.
Mike Vrabel’s group looked shaky at the start of the year, but the turnaround started with the Week 3 road win in Buffalo. That 29-26 victory over the Bills - the Patriots’ main AFC East competition - seems to have kicked off a run that also included wins over Las Vegas and New York.
If Chicago can’t get pressure on Maye, this could turn into a productive afternoon for New England through the air. Demario Douglas, Romeo Doubs and Hunter Henry are all in line to benefit, and the Patriots will also be looking for A.J. Brown to provide the explosive playmaking element, even though he didn’t look good against the Jets.
There’s a lot packed into this one: the No. 1 pick against the No. 3 pick, two teams with championship hopes, and a pair of quarterbacks who could sit near the top of the league for years. On paper, the Patriots look like the more complete team right now, mostly because they’ve been steadier on defense. The Bears were solid enough in that area against Atlanta, but they were ripped apart by Green Bay’s deep passing attack the week before.
That’s where this game tilts. Maye should be able to challenge deep too, and New England looks positioned to land the bigger hits in the passing game and walk away with a key win on Thursday night.
In Other News...
Patriots Rookie Suddenly Has A Veteran Starter Under Real Pressure
The Patriots have spent the first six games of the 2026 season patching together an offensive line that has been hit by injuries to Mike Onwenu, Ben Brown, Morgan Moses and Alijah Vera-Tucker, and the latest solution has come from an unexpected source. Rookie Caleb Lomu has been pressed into duty at right tackle and, despite limited experience at the spot, has looked far more ready than most first-year linemen are when they are thrown into the fire.
Lomus play has put real pressure on the veteran starter ahead of him on the depth chart, especially with Moses status still unclear. If the injury keeps Moses sidelined much longer, the Patriots may have to make a decision they probably hoped to avoid this early in the year, because Lomu has already shown enough to make the conversation more than theoretical. [Read more 🡒]
Rex Ryan's A.J. Brown Roast Gave Patriots Fans A New Debate
A sloppy afternoon for A.J. Brown became one of the more talked-about side stories around the Patriots' narrow home win over the Jets, with the receiver back in action after an ankle injury but still searching for rhythm. New England's 4-2 start was the bigger takeaway, yet Brown's return carried its own share of drama as he made multiple costly mistakes in a game that stayed tight into the closing stages.
Rex Ryan added fuel afterward with a pointed ESPN critique that had Patriots fans buzzing nearly as much as the final score. The segment turned Brown's rough outing into a wider talking point about how much pressure comes with trying to reestablish yourself quickly after an injury, and why even one bad night can linger when it comes in a game that close. [Read more 🡒]
A.J. Brown's Return Leaves Patriots Facing One Immediate Concern
A.J. Brown was back on the field for the Patriots in their Week 6 win over the Jets after sitting out more than a month, and the overall result offered a useful reminder of how much this offense can still function with other pieces carrying the load. New England got enough from its passing game to win, with multiple players chipping in for receiving yards and touchdowns even as Brown worked his way back into the mix.
Still, the return did not look especially clean on Browns end, which is where the immediate concern comes in. He was heavily involved but did not turn that volume into much production, a sign there is still some rust to knock off as the Patriots turn quickly to a Thursday Night Football matchup with the Bears. [Read more 🡒]