Week 10 of the NFL season brings a battle of top quarterbacks from the 2024 draft when the Chicago Bears host the New England Patriots.
Caleb Williams and Drake Maye, respectively, entered the league as the No. 1 and No. 3 overall picks falling into very different scenarios. The Bears built up talent around Williams for two years before his arrival. Meanwhile, the Patriots did not have the same support system ready for Maye, though the North Carolina product continues to make plays against the team’s self-inflicted adversity.
New England enters at 2-7 with expected struggles in the earliest days of a new era and a total rebuild under first-year head coach Jerod Mayo. Losses have been the status quo and the development of talented youth far outweighs the focus or value of wins and losses for the Patriots in 2024.
As for the Bears, Chicago competes in a loaded NFC North with talented teams in the Minnesota Vikings, the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions. This division could load up the NFC postseason picture that currently sees Chicago falling behind at 4-4. The Bears featured back-to-back devastating losses and may be in store for another should the Patriots pull off an upset on Sunday.
Concerns already exist surrounding the capabilities around Chicago head coach Matt Eberflus. Williams also ended the game limping in a 20-point loss to the Cardinals in Week 9. While the Bears are still early in their new era, could a loss to New England be enough to mark the end for Eberflus and send Chicago in a new direction?
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The Patriots and Bears kick off at Solider Field at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.
Featured image via Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images
