The Bengals return come back to Paycor Stadium to host the New England Patriots in Week 12.

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Scouting Report

By: Michael Hull

Patriots Offense

The Patriots have won eight straight games in a season for the first time with a quarterback not named Tom Brady and the eighth total time in franchise history.

Second-year signal caller Drake Maye has taken a leap in 2025 after a successful rookie campaign. In their Week 11 win over the Jets, Maye became the third player since 1950 with an 80+ passer rating and a win in eight straight games before turning 24, joining Lamar Jackson and Dan Marino.

Maye leads the NFL with 2,836 yards through the air and ranks fourth with 20 passing touchdowns. He's also added 70 carries for 285 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. The 2024 first-round pick from North Carolina averages 8.9 yards per completion, the second-most in the NFL behind Seattle QB Sam Darnold. Per Pro Football Focus, Maye's 80.6% adjusted completion percentage leads all quarterbacks with at least 100 dropbacks.

While Maye has been strong in every aspect of his game, he's been sacked 36 times in 11 games, the second-most sacks taken in the league behind Titans QB Cam Ward, and he's been pressured on 39.2% of his dropbacks, per PFF. Maye's 65.1 PFF-offensive grade when facing pressure is the fifth highest in the NFL among quarterbacks with at least 50 dropbacks under pressure.

Rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson has come alive in the last few weeks, scoring five touchdowns in the last two games. Henderson became the second rookie in New England history to score three touchdowns in a single game last week, joining Rob Gronkowski. In the last two games, Henderson has averaged 19.5 touches and 121.5 yards from scrimmage per game after averaging 9.7 touches and 46.0 yards per game in Weeks 1-9.

New England brought in veteran WR Stefon Diggs this offseason, and the four-time Pro Bowler has fit in seamlessly with the offense. Diggs leads the Patriots with 659 receiving yards and 59 receptions. His 71 targets rank 18th in the NFL among wideouts, and his 82.5 PFF-receiving grade ranks 13th. WR Kayshon Boutte has enjoyed a mini breakout season as the team's primary deep threat, averaging 18.7 yards per reception, which ranks seventh in the NFL among receivers with at least 10 targets. Boutte also leads the team with five touchdowns, followed by veteran TE Hunter Henry with four.

Patriots Defense

The Patriots have allowed the eighth-fewest yards per game defensively, giving up 300.6 yards per contest. They've also allowed the fifth-fewest points per game, 18.1, and have allowed more than 23 points in a game just once this season, all the way back in Week 2.

Teams have struggled to run the ball against New England, as the Patriots allow 84.7 yards per game on the ground, the fewest in the NFL. They've also given up just four rushing touchdowns this season (fewest in the NFL) and 3.9 yards per carry (eighth fewest).

LB Robert Spillane has been a key driver in the improved team run defense: His 89.5 PFF-run defense grade ranks fifth among linebackers with at least 50 snaps played this season. Spillane is tied for 10th in the NFL with 90 tackles.

The Patriots have tallied 24 sacks this season, ranking 18th in the NFL. Their leader in sacks, edge rusher K'Lavon Chaisson, has 6.5 takedowns this year, tied for 15th in the NFL.

New England has been more susceptible to the passing attack, ranking middle of the pack in yards allowed per game through the air (215.9). CB Christian Gonzalez missed the first three weeks of the season with injury. Since his return, Gonzalez has allowed 22 receptions on 50 targets in coverage for 244 yards, per PFF. The Patriots signed CB Carlton Davis this offseason in an effort to shore up the corner position opposite Gonzalez, and Davis has allowed 27 receptions and four touchdowns on 41 targets in coverage this season.

What to Watch For

By: Diego Branda

Tee's Touchdown Streak

Tee Higgins has a pair of touchdown streaks rolling into Sunday, as he has caught a scoring pass from Joe Flacco in each of the last four games overall, and he also has at least one receiving touchdown in each of his last nine games at Paycor Stadium dating back to Week 5 of last season.

A touchdown catch against New England would make Higgins the first Bengals player with a scoring reception in five straight games since A.J. Green, who logged a nine-game streak in Weeks 2-11 of the 2012 season.

Higgins also has a chance to match Pro Football Hall of Famers Bob Hayes and Cris Carter as the only players in NFL history with a touchdown grab in 10 consecutive home games played. Hayes put his streak together during the 1965 and '66 seasons, while playing for the Dallas Cowboys at the Cotton Bowl. Carter found the end zone in 10 straight games at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome during the 2000-01 campaigns.

Higgins' seven total receiving touchdowns this season are tied for third-most in the NFL. He is three touchdowns shy of matching his career high of 10 last season.

Brown Racking Up the Scrimmage Yards

Chase Brown has posted 100 or more yards from scrimmage in each of the past four games, marking the longest active streak in the NFL. He is coming off a season-high 127 scrimmage yards in Week 11 at Pittsburgh, with 99 rushing yards on 18 carries and 28 receiving yards on six receptions.

Brown is averaging 111.0 scrimmage yards per game since Week 7, the sixth-most among all running backs in that span. He logged 100 yards from scrimmage in the Thursday night home win over the Steelers, then followed up with 105 in Week 8 against the Jets and 112 in Week 9 versus Chicago.

Brown has a chance to match his longest career streak of 100-plus scrimmage yards this Sunday, as he previously put together a five-game streak from Weeks 11-16 last season. He currently has 748 total yards from scrimmage this year, with 519 on the ground and 229 receiving.

Extra Points

• Zac Taylor enters Sunday with 49 regular-season wins as the Bengals' head coach and will have a chance to join former head coaches Paul Brown, Sam Wyche and Marvin Lewis in Cincinnati's 50-win club.
• Evan McPherson has 186 career made extra points, which is three shy of Horst Muhlmann (189) for fifth in Bengals history.
• Ryan Rehkow currently leads the NFL with 53.1 yards per punt.
• The Bengals have allowed just eight sacks since week 6, tied for the third-fewest in the NFL in that stretch.

Check out the Bengals 2025 Schedule.