The New England Patriots (3-3) take on the Chicago Bears (2-4) at Gillette Stadium in a Monday Night showdown between two 2021 first-round quarterbacks in Mac Jones and Justin Fields.
The Patriots can also expect to see their old friend, N’Keal Harry, who is making his season debut this week after landing on IR earlier this year.
The Bears currently have a plethora of holes on their roster, specifically in their offensive line, that has led to their struggles in the first six games of the season.
Without further ado, let’s get into the keys to the game for this week’s Monday Night Football matchup.
Offensively, don't get too cute.
The Patriots offense has looked much better over the past three games than it did in the first three, but that is mostly due to the team tuning the game plan for a rookie QB.
Now that Mac Jones is likely to play, both the Patriots and Jones need to keep it simple—not just for Jones’ injury, but for the sole fact that sometimes simple is better and less is more.
If Jones can limit turnovers and have more time to make the correct reads, the team will thrive. Getting too “cute” means no more deep 50/50 shots unless the situation calls for it. Allow Jones to get into rhythm and allow him to get the ball to the Patriots’ expensive weapons, like Hunter Henry, Jonnu Smith, Kendrick Bourne and Nelson Agholor.
Contain Justin Fields
As much as the offensive line of the Bears is a burden for Fields, they’re still an NFL offensive line, and respect needs to be given. Fields is capable of making big plays with his feet, and a lot of that comes when the pocket collapses, or coverage is good down field, which I am certain will happen on Monday.
The Patriots will need to ensure Fields is forced to stay in the pocket and deliver tight throws, which is not something I think Fields is capable of doing with this offensive line and these weapons.
RUN! RUN! RUN!
Keep pounding the rock with Rhamondre Stevenson and Damien Harris, who was a full participant at practice on Saturday, and take off the pressure off Mac Jones. The Patriots need to let Jones get the ball into Stevenson’s hands more as he works his way into third-down back territory and attempts to nudge out Harris. But they certainly need to run the ball with both backs, if they’re active.
Harris is still a very good running back, and the Bears are a very bad team. So if the run game can get going early, Jones won’t have too much pressure in his first game back, allowing him to settle in and get back into a rhythm.
