CINCINNATI — The Bengals gave Tom Brady one of the worst afternoons of his career the last time they got together.
They sacked Brady the first time he dropped to pass. They prevented the Patriots from getting into the end zone on a first-and-goal from the 1-yard line. They picked off his final pass in a downpour, ending one of the NFL’s most impressive passing streaks.
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WHO: Cincinnati Bengals (3-0) at New England Patriots (2-2)
WHEN: 8:30 p.m. Sunday
TV: NBC
Brady’s stretch of 52 consecutive games with a touchdown pass – the second-longest in NFL history – ended emphatically last Oct. 6 at Paul Brown Stadium with Cincinnati’s 13-6 win.
A lot is riding on their rematch on Sunday night in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Brady is trying to get the Patriots’ offense up and running after one of its worst showings, and the Bengals (3-0) are looking to drop him and stop him again.
The frequent goal of getting pressure on the quarterback is especially important against Brady, defensive tackle Domata Peko said.
“As soon as you get after him early and get him jittery and get him throwing the ball erratically, we have a good shot at winning the game,” he said. “But it all starts with hitting him early and stopping the running game.”
The Patriots (2-2) were at the Bengals’ mercy the last time they met.
Cincinnati limited the Patriots to 82 yards rushing. Brady completed a season-low 47.4 percent of his passes for 197 yards with an interception and a passer rating of 52.2 that also was his season low.
He had a chance to extend the touchdown pass streak and rally the Patriots after getting the ball back with 1:48 left in rainy weather. His pass intended for Aaron Dobson was picked off by Adam “Pacman” Jones near the goal line with 26 seconds left.
Cincinnati’s defense finished No. 3 in yards allowed last season. Brady will be facing a unit that has just about everyone back and might be even better. The Bengals have allowed a league-low 33 points and are the only team to give up 16 or fewer points in every game so far.
“We’re better this year, I think,” Jones said. “Everybody’s healthy. The guys up front are rushing, the guys in the back end are covering pretty, the linebackers are coming downhill. You have to kind of keep your head on a swivel because guys are hitting guys.”
Brady’s been hit a lot. The Patriots have given up 10 sacks, tied for fifth-most in the league. Brady was under constant pressure during a 41-14 loss at Kansas City on Monday night, when he threw for only 159 yards, fumbled on a sack and threw a pair of interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown.
And now he gets a Bengals team that showed last year it can get to him often. Brady was sacked four times in that loss at Paul Brown Stadium.
“They’ve got one of the best defenses in the league,” Brady said. “This is a team that gave us all we could handle last year, and it’s a great opportunity for us to go out on a Sunday night game and try to play a lot better than we played last week.”
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