Patriots defense could crush Joe Burrow's history-making dream in Week 1

The Patriots kick off their 2024 season against an incredibly tough opponent: the Cincinnati Bengals. Despite their close matchup from last season, the assumption remains that they have no chance of beating the perennial Super Bowl contenders.

While it's possible New England won't fare well against their Week 1 opponent, there is plenty for the team to be motivated by, one of which could be history making.

A lot has been going on with the Bengals this offseason, with one of the biggest stories revolving around their star receiver, Ja'Marr Chase, who has been amid a holdout in the days leading to Sunday's matchup. Although he has returned to practice over the last few days, he has reportedly been limited with his participation, which doesn't bode well for Cincy's offense against what should be a dominant Patriots defense.

The defensive roster has been the better part of the team for the last few years, and they're expected to be the main reason the Patriots remain close or even win several games this season.

Continuing their dominance as a top-10 group in the league could be motivation enough, but knowing that Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow could make history with a standout performance against them might be more motivating to silence the doubters and wreak havoc against an AFC powerhouse.

Joe Burrow is on the cusp of making NFL history--the Patriots defense should make sure it doesn't at their expense

Besides proving they are still a defense opposing offenses shouldn't want to mess with, the Patriots crushing a potential history-making performance from Burrow would be the silver lining of what most believe is an incoming loss in Week 1.

The fifth-year quarterback is three touchdowns away from tying Justin Herbert in fourth place as the quickest quarterback in league history to throw for 100 touchdowns, which would happen in 52 games. Patrick Mahomes sits atop the list by accomplishing that in just 40 games, followed by Dan Marino in 44 and Kurt Warner in 50.

Throwing three touchdowns in a game is not an easy feat, but Burrow has done it 16 times in his career and hopes to make Sunday's matchup the 17th. The Patriots' defense looks more than capable of shutting that down, and perhaps this will be exactly the motivation they need to get it done.

That won't be easy either, however, especially with Chase looking like he will be back on the field to join his playmaking teammate Tee Higgins, on top of playing at home to open the season.

More Patriots news and analysis: