Pats Pulpit
A decade had passed since the New England Patriots last won nine in a row.
It took a 26-20 Pyrrhic victory to get there against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
Here’s a glance back on the 1 p.m. ET kickoff at Paycor Stadium as head coach Mike Vrabel’s team heads to December with a 10-2 record.
No defense around the NFL entered Sunday behind Cincinnati’s. Yet while ranked last with 33.4 points allowed per game, 418.2 yards allowed per game as well as in terms of DVOA, that wasn’t on display early.
Opening in “11” personnel, the first drive for New England’s offense brought one first down before ending in a punt. A three-and-out followed next time out against more man coverage and extra heat. And as the second quarter arrived, so did an airmailed interception over the middle that safety Geno Stone returned to the end zone for a 10-0 Bengals lead.
But Drake Maye went right back to his tenured tight end for a team-high seven catches worth 115 yards on Sunday. After finding Hunter Henry for a 28-yard, play-action touchdown on a corner route before halftime, he had another score to his fellow captain wiped away by offensive pass interference after it.
The Patriots quarterback finished 22-of-35 through the air for a career-high 294 yards along with his sixth interception of the season. He added 22 rushing yards on a handful of scrambles.
New England’s offensive line didn’t have to face All-Pro defensive end Trey Hendrickson on Sunday. The group had to face attrition instead.
Rookie left tackle Will Campbell needed assistance leaving the field late in the third quarter after getting caught on run play. The No. 4 overall pick out of LSU was carted from the blue medical tent to the locker room with a towel over his head and was ruled out with a knee injury.
That loss came hours after rookie left guard Jared Wilson went down with an ankle injury on the initial drive. The No. 95 overall pick out of Georgia was also carted from the sideline and downgraded to out with an ankle injury.
An entirely new blindside was the result for an offense line that had kept its starting combination for 10 games this season. Backup Vederian Lowe stepped in at left tackle. Ex-Bengal Ben Brown did the same at left guard. They were joined in the trenches by ironman center Garrett Bradbury, right guard Mike Onwenu and right tackle Morgan Moses, who also exited briefly because of an illness as seventh-round swingman Marcus Bryant stepped in.
Cincinnati stood with 14 sacks on the season. That total climbed to 15 against a team that remains unbeaten on the road.
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