New England quarterback Drake Maye drew comparisons to a Hall of Famer this week ahead of the Patriots’ road game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, although not the sporting great that most might expect.
It wasn’t Tom Brady, who — until now — was the only Patriots quarterback to lead his team to an eight-game winning streak.
Instead, Maye’s coach compared him with a big-league pitcher known for his pinpoint accuracy. Coaching helped, Mike Vrabel said, but Maye also had a natural gift for making accurate throws.
“I don’t know if there’s a pitching coach that really taught Greg Maddux how to paint the plate and put the ball wherever he wanted it,” Vrabel said.
New England (9-2) will turn to Maye to lead the way again when it opposes Cincinnati (3-7). The Patriots have not lost since Sept. 21 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and they are 5-0 on the road.
The Bengals would love to spoil the good feelings surrounding Maye and the Patriots.
Cincinnati has endured a miserable past couple months after quarterback Joe Burrow went down with a toe injury. The Bengals have lost three in a row and seven of their past eight, including a 34-12 defeat against the rival Steelers a week ago.
A mix of potentially good and certainly bad news descended on the Bengals this week.
On the bright side, Burrow returned to practice, fueling speculation that he could make the start this weekend. He has not played since sustaining his injury in Week 2.
Just don’t look to the Bengals coaching staff to confirm or deny whether Burrow will start.
“There is no reason for me to even speculate on that,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said as the practice week got underway.
Burrow’s return would be welcome news for the Bengals, but the team will be without Ja’Marr Chase this weekend. The star wideout will serve a one-game suspension for spitting on Steelers defensive back Jalen Ramsey last week.
Minus Chase, the Bengals will have to find a way to outscore a potent Patriots attack.
Maye enters Week 12 as the NFL leader with 2,836 passing yards. His passer rating of 113.2 ranks second in the league.
The Patriots’ running game also has come alive in recent weeks. Rookie TreVeyon Henderson has scored five touchdowns, including four on the ground and one through the air, in the past two weeks.
The Ohio State product has a chance to become the third rookie in the Super Bowl era to rush for multiple touchdowns in three games in a row. The only two who have accomplished the feat are Curtis Martin with the 1995 Patriots and Mike Anderson with the 2000 Denver Broncos.
The Bengals had five players who did not practice to start the week: defensive end Trey Hendrickson (hip/pelvis), running back Samaje Perine (knee), guard Jalen Rivers (knee/ankle), defensive end Cam Sample (oblique) and cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt (foot).
The Patriots did not have any players on the active roster miss practice on Wednesday. Seven players took part in limited drills, including running back Rhamondre Stevenson (toe) and tight end Austin Hooper (concussion).
