The New England Patriots have arrived to a point in their schedule where wins and losses can make or break them. That’s why the focus has been set on not overlooking any opponent.
Over the next month, the Patriots will play a very winnable schedule consisting of games against the offensively anemic Chicago Bears, banged up New York Jets (twice) and Sam Ehlinger-led Indianapolis Colts. A clean sweep of those four games would put them in contention for a playoff spot right around Thanksgiving, and looks entirely possible given what we’ve seen over the last couple weeks.
But, looking ahead like we just did is exactly what the Patriots cannot afford to do. This is a Bill Belichick coached football team after all.
In advance of Monday night’s matchup against the Bears, Patriots linebacker Matthew Judon shared some of the insights that have been bestowed on the team by Belichick during the long week of preparation. None of it was surprising.
“He’s telling us we can’t take this team lightly. No matter what their record says, they’re a better football team than that record,” Judon said in an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show on Monday, per Twitter video. “And we have to come out and be prepared. So we’re preparing as if they are the ’85 Bears, but this team is a very good football team.”
There aren’t many people who would describe the 2-4 Bears as “very good” these days. The team is riding a three-game losing streak where they’ve averaged 13 points per game. They are frisky, however.
Those three losses have all been in one-score games, and Chicago does have the benefit of the NFL’s second-best rushing attack. They should look to rely on that attack heavily, as the Patriots defense ranks in the middle of the pack against the run and could see some front-line shuffling with Lawrence Guy and Christian Barmore recently suffering injuries.
Ultimately, the Patriots are a better team and it appears as though they will see the return of their starting quarterback. But, as Belichick has apparently made clear, they shouldn’t be overlooking these pesky Bears.
