Bears 10, Patriots 0: Chicago goes up early with a Justin Fields TD. Can Mac Jones respond?
Justin Fields #JustinFields
The Patriots will take on the Bears on Monday Night Football at Gillette Stadium. And our big question has been answered — Mac Jones is starting at quarterback.
Jones missed three games after suffering a high-ankle sprain in the Patriots’ Week 3 loss to the Ravens. Rookie Bailey Zappe stepped in when Brian Hoyer went down with a head injury in Week 4, and has led New England to two straight wins as a starter.
You can watch on ESPN, and the game will be simulcast on NBC10 in the Boston area. You can listen on 98.5.
We’ll be offering live analysis and news throughout. Follow along below.
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Jones gets picked off — 8:58 p.m.
It looks like Jones didn’t see Jaquan Brisker, who stepped in front of Jones’s intended target, Jonnu Smith.
The Bears get the ball at their own 27 with 13:08 to go in the second quarter.
End of Q1: Bears 10, Patriots 0 — 8:50 p.m.
Mac Jones is the Patriots’ leading rusher with 10 yards on 2 carries.
Jones has targeted four receivers, connecting with three of them — his longest pass was a 12-yarder to Hunter Henry.
The Patriots’ formula isn’t working so far — 8:45 p.m.
The Patriots’ formula for success in their last two-plus games has been consistent defense, good special teams, and just enough offense to make a difference. The Patriots haven’t done that so far.
It probably hasn’t been Mac Jones’s fault, at last from this standpoint. Three penalties on your left tackle is a good place to begin that conversation.
In all, it’s pretty poor complementary football.
One positive note: Excellent work in run support on that second-down run from Jack Jones, a play that set up a third-and-6. Fields answered with a deep ball to keep things moving for Chicago.
Justin Fields runs it in — 8:43 p.m.
Bears 10, Patriots 0 | 2:11, first quarter
The drive: 7 plays, 56 yards, 4:18
A great start for the Chicago offense, as Justin Fields put the capper on an excellent drive with a three-yard touchdown run to make it 10-0 with 2:11 left in the first quarter.
Adding insult to injury, old pal N’Keal Harry had one of the receptions that moved the chains for the Bears, a 14-yarder that put Chicago into the red zone. Fields is 5-6 for 70 yards and a rushing touchdown to start the game.
What we’re seeing halfway through the first quarter — 8:36 p.m.
Jones looks to be OK when it comes to his movement and mobility.
Three penalties so far on Trent Brown. Referee Brad Allen is one of the most flag-happy officials in the league (as we told you in the pregame), but that’s a bad start for the veteran.
Stat check:
Mac Jones: 2-2, 1 yard; 1 carry, 6 yards
Rhamondre Stevenson: 2 carries, 5 yards
Damien Harris: 1 carry, 3 yards; 1 catch, 2 yards
Tough start for Trent Brown — 8:34 p.m.
Bears get on the board — 8:28 p.m.
Bears 3, Patriots 0 | 9:02, first quarter
The drive: 8 plays, 42 yards, 3:52
The Bears offense settled for a Cairo Santos field goal after taking over at their own 34-yard line and making it only 42 yards.
The analysis: One thing multiple people in Chicago said this week was that Fields’s biggest weakness as a passer is that he doesn’t get the ball out quickly enough.
In the early going, he’s looked good; the Bears picked up their first first down of the evening when Fields hit Darnell Mooney on a 20-yard pass play after a scramble. (Fields’ strength as a passer this year has come when he’s been on the move.) He had an 11-yarder to Equanimeous St. Brown that got Chicago deeper into New England territory before the field goal. Good start for Fields and the Bears.
Defensive starters — 8:26 p.m.
Jones, Patriots go four-and-out on first drive — 8:22 p.m.
Jones’s first pass attempt of the night was a little high. It’s reasonable to wonder if he was a little jacked up in his first action in a month.
He did look OK on the third-down scramble for six yards. We’ll see how the rest of the night shakes out for the quarterback, but the Bears will take over at their own 34-yard line with 12:54 left in the first quarter.
And we’re off — 8:15 p.m.
Stay tuned for updates.
On ESPN2 tonight … — 8:05 p.m.
President Barack Obama will join the Manning brothers.
The official Price Prediction — 8:00 p.m.
I say the Patriots win and cover tonight. Chicago’s strength is the run game, but if New England is able to execute against this Bears’ defense early — keep in mind that the Bears have one of the worst run defenses in the league — that’ll force Justin Fields to try and throw to get them back into the game. That’s a recipe for disaster for Chicago. If Mac Jones can settle in early after his time away, lean on his ground game, and avoid turnovers, this shouldn’t be close. Patriots 28, Bears 10.
What Bill Belichick said before the game — 7:50 p.m.
Here are the biggest takeaways from Bill Belichick’s pregame conversation with Scott Zolak, besides the fact that he confirmed Mac Jones will start:
· Belichick hailed the return of Jamie Collins, who is active for his first game of the season with New England. “He’s worked hard to get back into shape. Look forward to seeing him out there.”
· On the contributions of the rookies: “We’ll see how it goes. We’ve had some contributions here early. It’s always tough for rookies to [adjust] to a 17-game season. … But some of them are off to a good start. Hopefully, we can continue to build on that and not run out of gas.”
From Cole Strange to Bailey Zappe, the Patriots’ 2022 draft class already paying dividends
· On the Bears: “These guys play really hard. Their backs are hard to tackle — they get a lot of yards on their own. … Matt [Eberflus, Bears coach] has done a good job across the board. He’s gotten players to buy in. They’re improving every week.”
· On Justin Fields: “He can make big plays. He’s had some big scramble plays. … It’ll just take good team defense against a guy like this.”
Belichick says Jones will start — 7:38 p.m.
History for Belichick tonight? — 7:30 p.m.
A victory tonight will give Bill Belichick his 325th overall win and sole possession of second place on the all-time wins list for coaches, just 22 wins behind the 347 wins by Don Shula.
Belichick also enters tonight’s game tied with Shula and the Dolphins for second-most regular-season wins with one team at 257. With a win, Belichick will be in sole possession of second place, behind the 318 regular season wins by George Halas.
Numbers to know — 7:25 p.m.
A few numbers to look for this evening, courtesy of the Patriots’ PR staff:
· The Patriots have allowed just two rushing touchdowns in the first six games, and neither have been by an opponent’s running back. The longest the Patriots have gone without allowing a running back to score on a TD run is eight games (2019). New England is the only team that has not allowed an opposing running back to score yet this season.
· Deatrich Wise, Jr., who has five sacks this season, needs one more sack to hit a single-season career high.
· If Rhamondre Stevenson has a 30-yard run tonight, he’d become the first Patriots running back with a run of 30 yards or more in three straight games since Antowain Smith in 2001. Smith had a 38-yard run at Buffalo on Dec. 16, a 44-yard run vs. Miami on Dec. 22 and a 32-yard touchdown run at Carolina on Jan. 6.
· If Tyquan Thornton scores a rushing touchdown, he’ll become the first Patriots wide receiver with two rushing touchdowns in the same season, and would join Darryl Stingley as the only other Patriots wide receiver with two rushing touchdowns for his Patriots career.
· Tonight, Matthew Slater will play in his 213th game, putting him in second place for most games played in a Patriots uniform. No. 1? That would be the 285 games played by a guy named Tom Brady.
Why MNF will be simulcast on NBC10 instead of Channel 5 — 7:15 p.m.
From Chad Finn:
A few readers checked in this past week asking the same simple question: Why is the Patriots-Bears game on “Monday Night Football” being simulcast locally on NBC10 rather than Channel 5, Boston’s ABC affiliate where ESPN/ABC games usually air in this market?
Again, simple question, right? Which is why I’m stumped as to why asking for a simple explanation brought vague yet complicated answers from ESPN and the local stations involved.
Read the full story here.
Jahlani Tavai has traveled a long way to find a home — 7:10 p.m.
Jahlani Tavai has come a long way since the Lions cut him at the end of training camp in 2021, developing into one of the Patriots’ most versatile defenders on the second level.
Coincidentally, it was a call from Matt Patricia shortly after his Lions release that kicked-started Tavai’s career resurgence.
Read the full story here.
Breaking down the inactives — 7:00 p.m.
The Patriots just announced their inactives for Monday’s game:
Shaun Wade (illness) didn’t practice on Friday or Saturday, and was questionable as a result. While Wade isn’t a starter, his absence will again test the depth of the New England secondary. Look for Jack Jones, Jonathan Jones, and Jalen Mills to lead the way when it comes to playing time.
Christian Barmore (knee) was limited all week and questionable coming into the game. This is a sizable loss, as Barmore has done well this year when it comes to bottling up the run. The presence of Lawrence Guy (who has been in and out of the lineup all year because of health issues) should help mollify Barmore’s loss.
Kendrick Bourne (turf toe) was limited all week, and was questionable heading into the weekend. With no Bourne, the back end of the receiving depth chart could see more touches. Maybe this is the week for the annual Mattthew Slater deep ball attempt? (A traditional as old as time itself.)
Safety Joshuah Bledsoe (healthy scratch) is the victim of a numbers game — too many good safeties. The youngster will sit again this evening. (The thinking here — the decision to leave him inactive says more about those in front of him on the depth chart than Bledsoe himself.)
Linebacker Josh Uche (hamstring) was limited all week in practice, and was listed as questionable on Saturday. No surprise there.
The decision to leave rookie Kevin Harris (healthy scratch) inactive probably says more about the health of veteran Damien Harris, who didn’t play last week against the Browns but will dress tonight against the Bears.
Isaiah Wynn (shoulder) is inactive for the first time this season. The occasionally beleaguered Wynn, who has struggled in his move to right tackle, won’t go tonight, likely leaving the door open for Marcus Cannon.
The Patriots’ Isaiah Wynn has struggled to acclimate at right tackle. The result? The most penalties in the NFL.
Among the notables in action tonight for the Patriots include quarterback Mac Jones, who has been out since the end of September with a high-ankle sprain, as well as cornerbacks Jalen Mills (illness), and Jonathan Jones (ankle), both of whom listed as questionable on Saturday’s injury report.
Nelson Agholor (hamstring) is good to go as well — it’ll be interesting to see how playing time will shake out for rookie Tyquan Thornton as a result.
The weather report — 6:55 p.m.
The Patriots have dealt with the occasional passing shower this season, but tonight could be the first real ”weather” game of the year for the Patriots. Highs are expected to be in the upper 50s, with a chance of precipitation and fog this evening. (Although there could be a window where things will say relatively dry.)
Through the first six games, the Patriots are 1-1 when the temps are 80 or above at kickoff, 1-2 when it’s been in the 60s, and 1-0 when it’s been in the 50s. (We’re admittedly cherry-picking our stats here, but the Patriots have done very well lately when the temperature at kickoff has been 50 degrees; their last loss when it was between 50 and 59 degrees at kickoff was Oct. 18, 2020 at home against the Broncos.)
Tonight’s inactives — 6:45 p.m.
On the officiating crew — 6:35 p.m.
Brad Allen will work tonight’s game as the referee. According to NFLpenalties.com, his crew has called 64 penalties through five games, an average of 12.8 penalties per game — sixth-most in the league. History says he’s more inclined to throw a flag on the visitors; home teams have been hit with 27 penalties this year, while road teams have 37. False starts are his call of choice — a whopping 19 flags have been thrown because of false starts this year.
That could be bad news for Isaiah Wynn, who is tied for second in the league in false starts with three through six games. The Patriots are 2-3 in the last five games Allen has served as the lead official, including last year’s playoff loss to the Bills in Buffalo. This is his first New England game of the 2022 season.
Gambling notes: Patriots the favorite by at least a TD — 6:25 p.m.
A few gambling notes regarding the Patriots, all according to BetOnline:
· The line for Patriots-Bears started at New England -7.5, and moved to 9 as of last night. It was one of the biggest point swings over course of the week for BetOnline.
The biggest swing of the week, though, was the Jets-Broncos, where Denver went from -3 to +1, a four-point move. (For what it’s worth, WynnBet has the Patriots -7.5, and the over./under at 39.)
· The Patriots’ odds to win the Super Bowl have gone from 150/1 two weeks ago to 60/1. (Buffalo is tops at 14/5.) New England has 25/1 odds for winning the AFC after being at 75/1 two weeks ago, and is has 12/1 odds to win the division (they were 33/1 two weeks ago).
· After being off the board three weeks ago, Bailey Zappe and Jack Jones are 10/1 to win Offensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Rookie of the Year. (In Breece Hall and Sauce Gardner, the Jets have the favorites in both categories, although that’s likely to change with Hall’s season-ending injury.) Matthew Judon remains 50/1 to win Defensive Player of the Year, while Bill Belichick’s odds to win Coach of the Year have gone from 100/1 to 33/1 in the last two weeks.
Predictions? — 6:15 p.m.
What you need to know before the game — 6:10 p.m.
Best way to get the evening started is with your custom-designed pregame reading list:
Welcome to Monday Night Football — 6:00 p.m.
Good evening, and welcome to the Patriots’ first primetime game of the season.
Tonight, it’ll be New England (3-3) and Chicago (2-4) at Gillette Stadium. Will it be Bailey Zappe or Mac Jones at quarterback? Can the Patriots win their third straight? Will Bill Belichick be able to pass the legendary George Halas and move into second place on the all-time wins list? All those questions will be answered sooner rather than later.
We’ll have our usual routine — pregame notes and analysis, in-game updates, and postgame news from the press conferences. CUE THE BAND.