Rich on the Keys to Who Wins Bears-Patriots’ Possible Super Bowl Preview to Kick Off NFL WK7

Week 7 opened with a game good enough to start an argument before it kicked off. A caller, Josh in Kenosha, used his Higher Register Thursday slot to ask the question everyone was circling: is Patriots versus Bears, Caleb Williams against Drake Maye, a Super Bowl preview?

"A possible Super Bowl preview," came the answer on set. "That's why I hate it's on Thursday. This game deserves to be a Sunday night full rest complement."

Rich was not having any Thursday Night Football slander. "It's a great game for a Thursday night," he said. "It's a great appetite setter." He reminded the room that NFL Network is the one that put Thursday night football on the map years ago, and that he spent all those years on the road hearing the same complaints. "Oh, the rest this and the games aren't that good because everybody's tired," he said. "I don't want to hear it."

The protest continued. "I didn't want this game on a Thursday night." Rich's reply: "Well, it's going to be a great game, and I can't wait to see it."

Then Rich announced he had nuggets.

The conventional wisdom on set was simple. The Bears run the ball well and the Patriots can't stop the run. Chris was ready to sign off on it. Rich asked him to wait.

"The Bears do lead the NFL with 161 rushing yards per game," Rich said. The catch is young running back Kyle Monangai, who would miss this game too. Twice in a row without Monangai, Chicago has been held under 100 rushing yards.

On the other side, the Patriots have held opponents below 100 rushing yards in five of their six games, tied with three other teams for the most in the NFL. "So, as much as you think they don't stop the run, I got stats to say they do," Rich said.

There was a brief detour along the way. Rich confessed his affection for Jets running back Braelon Allen, joking that a friend answered his "I heart Braelon Allen" text by comparing Allen to Derrick Henry. The room pumped the brakes on that one. The rebuttal on set: when the Jets needed a short-yardage conversion, they ran it three times with somebody not named Braelon Allen. "That's for another day."

Back to the game. The second half of Rich's breakdown was about Maye, and how much he has changed in a few weeks. Through the first three games of the season, Maye had one passing touchdown, six interceptions and nine sacks taken.

"That guy is gone," Rich said.

In his last three games, Maye has 10 passing touchdowns, one interception and just two sacks taken.

That left Rich with two questions that he believes decide the night. Can a Bears offense missing Monangai run the ball against a New England defense that has quietly been one of the best in the league at stopping it? And what is Chicago's defense going to do against a Maye who has completely flipped the script on his season?

"Those are the two keys of the game," Rich said. Whatever night of the week it lands on.