Week 7 of the NFL season is officially here, and the Chicago Bears are kicking things off by welcoming the New England Patriots to Soldier Field for a Thursday Night Football matchup. It's set to be a battle of arguably the top two quarterbacks from the 2024 draft class, the top coaching hires from the 2025 offseason, and two teams in prime playoff position heading into the middle of the season.
The Bears (4-2) are coming off a big win against the Atlanta Falcons with a 31-23 score, thanks to a few key returning starters. Quarterback Caleb Williams was back in action after missing the last three games with a hamstring injury and put on a surgical performance against Atlanta's defense, throwing for over 300 yards and completing over 80% of his passes. On the other side of the ball, cornerback Kyler Gordon played in his first game of the year coming off a calf injury and was a heat-seeking missile coming off the edge. Gordon totaled three sacks and two forced fumbles, providing a much-needed spark to thwart Atlanta's offense.
As for the Patriots (4-2), they had some significant returns of their own in their close 26-19 win over the New York Jets. Wide receiver A.J. Brown was back from a high ankle sprain suffered in Week 1 but didn't have quite the impact he and the team were hoping for. Instead, quarterback Drake Maye spread the ball around, throwing three touchdowns in the victory. New England didn't come out unscathed, however, as they lost multiple starters on the offensive line and could be shorthanded Thursday.
The last time these two teams met, they were trending in the wrong direction with rookie quarterbacks trying to hang on for dear life. Now they're near the top of their respective conferences with many new players this time around. Here are five Patriots we'll be watching for on Thursday.
1. QB Drake Maye
It's the second iteration of Caleb Williams vs. Drake Maye, and this year's matchup should be a night-and-day difference between their first meeting as rookies. For both players. Maye was fine in that game, throwing for 184 yards, a touchdown, and an interception, but wasn't close to the MVP runner-up we saw in 2025.
This year, Maye struggled out of the gate with seven interceptions in his first four games, while completing fewer than 60% of his passes in two of them. Alarms were sounding across New England, but the former No. 3 overall pick has picked his play up since then. He has seven touchdowns with no picks in his last two games, leading the Patriots to wins in each. His numbers would look even better if his receivers didn't drop so many passes, too.
Maye has been uncorking the ball with beautiful deep shots. Those could be problematic for the Bears, as we've seen from a few games this year. The defense can't give him time to hit those explosive plays on Thursday. Otherwise we could be looking at some gaudy numbers and points being scored.
2. WR A.J. Brown
The addition of wide receiver A.J. Brown was supposed to give Maye an elite target in the passing game. Instead, Brown has been on the sidelines for most of the season after suffering a high ankle sprain in the opening game of the season. Last weekend marked his return, though it was nothing to write home about. While Brown looked quick and spry after recovering from the ankle injury, he only caught three passes on 10 targets with multiple bad drops.
For one reason or another, Brown couldn't get in rhythm. But don't expect that to be the norm. Especially against this Bears defense.
In his last two games facing the Bears when he was a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, Brown has caught 19 passes for 313 yards and two touchdowns. Jaylon Johnson did give him a good battle in 2022, but Brown single-handedly kept the Eagles in it during their 24-15 loss last year. If he remembers how to catch the ball, Brown could be a one-man wrecking crew for New England facing a Bears secondary that still has plenty of question marks.
3. OT Will Campbell
Much of the Patriots' offensive line is depleted due to injuries, including left tackle Will Campbell. Even banged up, however, he put the clamps down on the Jets' defensive front last week to allow just one pressure on 34 pass blocks, according to Next Gen Stats.
Campbell, the No. 4 overall pick from the 2025 NFL Draft, is a talented tackle with some physical limitations when it comes to his arm length. The Bears have some bendy edge rushers, most notably Austin Booker, who may be able to take advantage of Campbell's lack of reach. And with three other offensive linemen possibly unavailable, he likely will be left on an island. Let's see if the Bears can take advantage of Campbell or if the young tackle winds up shutting them down.
4. LB Elijah Ponder
The Patriots have a few major disruptors in their front seven on defense, including rookie edge rusher Gabe Jacas and second-year linebacker Elijah Ponder. Jacas is starting to find his footing, but the biggest threat is Ponder. He already has totaled 5.5 sacks in six games, along with seven tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries.
Ponder is big and fast off the edge, giving all sorts of tackles trouble. It doesn't matter if you're an average tackle like Steelers' Dylan Cook or a perennial All-Pro like the Buccaneers' Tristan Wirfs; Ponder is making everyone look foolish.
His style of play could present a challenge to left tackle Theo Benedet and give Williams some trouble as well. The Bears quarterback isn't as mobile as usual just yet after returning from a lengthy hamstring injury, making him more vulnerable when scrambling. Ponder could come away with a sack.
5. S Kevin Byard
We all know the best defensive back on the Patriots roster is cornerback Christian Gonzalez, who is having yet another sensational season as one of the best lockdown defenders in the league. He will be a tough matchup for any of the Bears' receivers. But perhaps the more interesting player to watch is former Bears All-Pro safety Kevin Byard, who makes his return to Chicago after signing with the Patriots in the offseason.
Byard doesn't have the high interception totals that made him stand out last year. In fact, he's still searching for his first pick of the season after totaling seven in 2025. But Byard has also been better in pass coverage overall. He's allowing an opposing passer rating of just 76.8 and has yet to let up a touchdown, according to Pro Football Reference.
Most interestingly, however, is the fact Byard knows Williams better than any opposing defensive back in the NFL. He knows exactly what Williams is capable of, having seen it up close for two years in a row. Byard has always been effusive in his praise for Williams, but you can be sure he has this game circled. With how savvy Byard is as a veteran, the Bears will need to know where he is on the field and not give him a chance to come away with a pick.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: 5 Patriots players to watch vs. Bears