New England Patriots vs. Cincinnati Bengals: Five Key Matchups

Sep 29, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs outside linebacker

(91) hits New England Patriots quarterback

(12) while passing during the second half at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs won 41-14. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

1. Pats O-Line vs. Bengals D-Line

One of the best defensive fronts in the NFL facing off with one of the worst offensive lines in football.

Tom Brady is going to take quite a few hits.

But what I am really interested to see, is how the big boys up front respond to their embarrassing loss on Monday night. With their current pool of talent, there is no way the Patriots’ offensive line is going to go out there and dominate Cincy. It’s just not feasible. However if New England decides to play the same five lineman, and not continually rotate guys in and out, and dedicate their game-plan to getting the running game going, I have a feeling we may be pleasantly surprised by what we see from this group.

The inside of the line has to get good push off the ball, getting the likes of Geno Atkins, and Domata Peko off the line of scrimmage. To afford Tom Brady time to throw, the Patriots need to get Stevan Ridley going on the ground, and it all starts with the offensive line winning their 1-on-1 matchups.