1 week Ago By Conor Ryan
By Conor Ryan After suffering a discouraging overtime loss to the Titans in Week 9, Jerod Mayo and the Patriots bounced back on Sunday with a 19-3 win over the Bears at Soldier Field. It was arguably the most complete effort submitted so far this season from the 3-7 Patriots. While Drake Maye (208 total yards), Rhamondre Stevenson (74 rushing yards) and New England’s offense made enough plays to give the team some breathing room, the Patriots defense feasted against Chicago — sacking Bears QB Caleb Williams nine times in a dominant performance.
But don’t count Bill Belichick among those impressed with New England’s win on the road. During his weekly appearance on ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show”, Belichick focused more on the sorry state of the Bears than giving credit to the Patriots for executing in a much-needed “get right” game. “To me, the bigger thing is just where the Bears are,” Belichick said.
“I mean, they can’t protect, they can’t move the ball, they can’t score any points. ..
. They have this All-Star quarterback, these All-Star receivers, the greatest skill players in the history of football, and the offensive line is a problem, they can’t run the ball, they can’t protect.” "Drake Maye has done a good job when he's able to scramble.
. The bigger thing is where the Bears are..
They can't protect and they can't score any points" ~ Bill Belichick #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/SpHDWu3aGs Belichick is right in that Chicago’s pass protection has been downright dreadful all season long in front of Williams.
The Bears have given up six-plus sacks in back-to-back games for the first time since 1993. Williams has already been sacked 38 times over nine games this season. For those keeping track, the all-time record for most sacks against a single QB in a season is Houston’s David Carr (76) during the 2002 season.
While Belichick doled out plenty of blame toward the Bears for their struggles on the offensive line, the former Patriots head coach did give some credit to Maye for his ability to escape the pocket and extend plays. “I think he’s done a good job when he’s been able to scramble and run around,” Belichick said of Maye. “Made some plays on play-action where they can separate the defense because the running game, when (Rhamondre) Stevenson can get it going, draws some of the coverage and the linebackers up and so forth.
” Instances of Belichick handing out praise to the Patriots have been few and far between this season across his several media ventures. While Belichick has been quick to criticize Mayo and the Patriots after missteps in the media or losses on the field , he’s largely remained mum when New England has come away with a victory. After side-stepping most of the discourse after New England’s Week 1 win over the Bengals and Drake Maye’s promising debut against Houston , Belichick once against focused more on the Jets’ miscues than the Patriots’ own play after their Week 8 victory over New York.
“Just a lot of mistakes by the Jets, and then that ended up killing them in the end, with Jacoby [Brissett’s] scrambles. [Kayshon] Boutte made a catch down there,” Belichick said last month on “The Pat McAfee Show”. “There were several drops in the game.
“But just a game that you look at Jacoby — and then [Haason] Reddick came in the game and just ran past the quarterback multiple times, whether it was Maye or Jacoby. ..
. Big win for the Patriots at home against the Jets. And [the] Jets are now in a tough spot.
” Conor Ryan Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023. Boston.
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