The New England Patriots suffered key injuries in their win over the Bengals. Four players: left tackle Will Campbell, left guard Jared Wilson, defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga, and special teams ace Brenden Schooler were injured. It was lousy medicine, and one ESPN writer, Ben Solak, has already written them off as an AFC first-seed contender.
He's forgotten one thing: the Patriots have Drake Maye, and he is the great equalizer.
Yet, even with Maye on hand, Patriot Nation can't minimize the importance of those injuries. All of them hurt since all are key contributors. Let's not sugarcoat it; it's not a good thing when you're in a race to take the top regular-season prize.