For the second consecutive week, head coach Mike Vrabel was involved in a reunion game.
Sure, he was just a consultant for the Browns (2-6) during the 2024 season after spending six years as the Titans head coach (2018-23), but his connection to Cleveland goes much deeper than that as a kid born and raised in northeast Ohio.
“You don't grow up in northeast Ohio [and] not be a Browns fan and have necklaces that are made of dog biscuits,” Vrabel said to close out his Friday post-practice press conference. “I mean, of course I did. And so, I lived that, and Bernie Kosar.
“[Working for the Browns] was a good experience for me. It was probably the place where I was supposed to be last year. It allowed me to kind of reconnect with a lot of different things as far as whether that's being back around home, seeing old friends and going to high school football games, or spending more time with people that you don't really spend a lot of time with during the season.”
He might have a soft spot in his heart for his once beloved organization, but that didn’t keep his team from laying the smackdown on Cleveland on Sunday at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots (6-2) beat the Browns 32-13, winning their fifth game in a row and showing once again that times have changed at 1 Patriot Place.
Here are your Ups & Downs for Week 8:
Ups:
- Myles Garrett: This dude is everything that’s advertised, and then some.
Five sacks on the day, including two that forced New England into having field goal drives instead of putting six on the board. His third was a strip sack late in the second half that killed momentum for a Patriots’ drive that looked like it was heading for the end zone.
When you see a guy like this have a game like this in-person, it gives you full understanding as to why edge rushers are among the highest paid positions in football.
HOT TAKE - The Patriots should get themselves a guy like that!
- Robert Spillane: It may have been a terrible throw by rookie Dillon Gabriel, but Spillane’s pick followed by a 33-yard return to the Browns 6 in the third quarter was really the moment in the game where it felt like the Patriots were back to being head-and-shoulders better than Cleveland on Sunday. Not only that, it had this stadium buzzing in a way it hadn’t all game long.
Spillane finished the day with 14 total tackles, and was everywhere on the field all game long. He’s starting to live up to all that offseason hype he came in with, and that’s a good thing for Vrabel’s defense moving forward.
- Marcus Jones: Every single week, this guy makes plays.
On Cleveland’s second possession of the game, the fourth-year corner was responsible for a tackle for a loss on 2nd and 6 from the Browns 48. Two plays later, Cleveland was punting the ball to New England.
Two defensive possessions late, with the Patriots down 7-6 with just over 6:00 to play in the second quarter, Jones’ coverage on Browns wide receiver Isaiah Bond on 3rd and 4 led to an incompletion that forced a Cleveland punt on 4th down.
This guy’s growth as a defender in 2025 has been a truly pleasant surprise. I have to think playing next to guys like Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis III doesn’t hurt, either.
- Andy Borregales: If I’m going to include the kicker in the “Downs” section when he plays poorly, I have to include him in the “Ups” when he has a nice day. It’s only fair!
3 for 3 on field goal attempts, accounting for all 9 of New England’s first half points. Kicks were good from 36, 32 and 42.
Making the gimmes goes a long way towards retaining employment at the kicking position in the NFL.
- Jaylinn Hawkins: It may have been on an absolute desperation ball from Gabriel on a 1st and 10 from his own 26, but the pick Hawkins came down with just one possession after Spillane was one of the more impressive interceptions I have ever seen.
Not hyperbole.
Please watch:
Some Ups, Some Downs:
- Drake Maye: It’s been a while since the 23-year-old quarterback needed to be placed in any section other than “Ups,” but Sunday called for a return to “Some Ups, Some Downs” for the MVP candidate.
Don’t get me wrong - there were a lot more ups than downs. But when you’re a player at the level of Maye, you have to nitpick given the lofty expectations week-to-week.
Some “ups” early, with a 16-yard scramble and a 15-yard slant pass helping set the Patriots up in the red zone for a chance at points on their opening possession. Unfortunately for Maye, Myles Garrett still plays for the Browns, and the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year got him for a sack on 3rd and goal from the Cleveland 8. An opportunity for six turned into three, as Borregales’ field goal accounted for the first points of the day.
Two drives later, it was a different story for Maye.
On a 3rd and 9 from their own 41, Maye threw the ball to Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger, hiding in plain sight in the middle of the field. Had Schwesinger not caught the ball, it still may have been picked off, as Maye was targeting a completely-covered Stefon Diggs.
One possession later for Maye, and he was back to making MVP-level plays on his team’s second scoring drive of the day.
On consecutive plays early in the drive, Maye had a 31-yard completion to tight end Austin Hooper up the seam, and a 21-yard completion to wide receiver Mack Hollins towards the boundary to set New England up for a 1st and 10 from the Cleveland 11.
Three plays later, and Garrett was still in a Browns uniform, dropping Maye for yet another field goal-forcing sack.
We got more good from Maye on the final possession of the half, with the North Carolina-product finding wide receiver DeMario Douglas wide open in the middle of the field for a 44-yard gain on 3rd and 3 from their own 24 to set the Patriots up with a 1st and 10 from the Browns 32 with just over a minute remaining in the quarter.
Two plays later was that impressive strip sack from Garrett. And one play after that was a false start by Henry that set the Patriots up with a 3rd and 23 from the Browns 45 with 29 seconds remaining in the half.
What looked like a situation where the Patriots were going to go into the half down one to a two-win team ended up being salvaged by Maye, as he made a great play in the pocket to find wide receiver Kayshon Boutte on a 21-yard pass-and-catch to set Borregales up for the go-ahead field goal.
Fast forward to New England’s final possession of the third quarter, and Maye had the crowd chanting “M-V-P! M-V-P!”
On consecutive plays, Maye gave you a healthy helping of the two most impressive facets of his game, leading to New England taking a 30-7 lead on the day.
On 1st and 10 from the New England 33, Maye scrambled for 28 yards up the left seam on a play where no one was open upfield, as the playmaker did the right thing by using his legs with all the open field Cleveland left out there for him. His “slide” at the end was more of a plop, but that’s a different topic for a different day.
One play later, Maye showed off his incredible deep-ball ability, finding Boutte downfield for his requisite weekly deep score. It was an absolutely perfect throw, as Boutte got behind two defenders to meet the football as he fell into the end zone by the front left pylon. A 39-yard beauty that immediately vaults into his top five throws of the season.
You’re probably sitting here thinking, “One bad mistake bumps this guy out of ‘Ups?’” The answer, clearly, is yes. MVP-level players are held to a different standard than the rest of the roster.
- TreVeyon Henderson: After a week where his lack of productivity was one of the only negative storylines coming out of his team’s win against the Titans, the rookie came out of the gate as a big part of the Patriots’ opening game script, picking up 30 rushing yards on just two carries on New England’s first drive.
Hockey assist to Henderson for helping the Patriots come away with points to open the ballgame, as Andy Borregales hit a 36-yard field goal at 8:45 to go in the first quarter.
Fast forward to New England’s first possession of the second half, and Henderson was back making an impact. On consecutive plays, the Ohio State-product was picking up a first down while showing that patented burst we fell in love with during the preseason.
The first was a 6-yard gain to the outside that set up a 1st and 10 from the New England 35, and next was a 27-yard gain to the outside that set up a 1st and 10 from the Cleveland 38. Four plays later, and Drake Maye was tossing it to a wide open Hunter Henry for a 7-yard touchdown. An extra point later, and New England was up 16-7 with 9:10 to go in the third quarter.
That second set of plays for Henderson should be the model for offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels getting him more involved in the offense moving forward. Put him in positions to make plays in space, and good things will happen. He’s clearly struggling with runs between the tackles - that’s fine when you have a guy in Rhamondre Stevenson who is happy to do the dirty work inside.
…so why isn’t he listed in “Ups?”
With the game already in hand at 4:59 in the fourth quarter, Henderson fumbled on a 5-yard gain at the Browns 4 yard line. Cleveland ended up recovering the ball on the 1, and McDaniels’ attempt to get Henderson in the end zone during his best game as a pro to date fell flat.
It had no real bearing on the outcome of the game, but it gives you just a notch-less confidence in the rookie moving forward, especially with Stevenson’s extensive history of fumbling issues.
Downs:
- Slow-starting Defense: Another week, another opening drive touchdown for the Patriots’ opponent.
In 6 of New England’s 8 games this season, they’ve allowed a touchdown on their first defensive possession of the game.
On Sunday, it was an 18-yard touchdown pass from Gabriel to rookie Harold Fannin Jr. An extra point later, and the Browns were on top 7-3 with 5:10 remaining in the first quarter.
Maybe it’s just an unlucky streak of great game scripts? Maybe these guys aren’t hitting the field fired up enough to come out of the gates guns blazing? Maybe they’re not getting up early for these bad teams on their schedule?
I don’t know what it is, but the bad tackling and leaving guys wide open in space to start the game needs to stop. They might be able to come back against bad teams, but allowing offenses to get hot come playoff time will make for an early exit.
- Offensive Line: This is a unit that was a mainstay of the “Downs” section throughout the 2024 season. Before games would even start, I would write this position group in as a placeholder for this section. And more often than not, it stayed there through publishing.
This is the first time in 2025 that the entire unit has made their way into the “Downs” section. And we’re going up against a player the caliber of Garrett, it’s bound to happen.
Six sacks allowed on the day for the O-line, and I wouldn’t put any of them on Maye.
Rookie left tackle Will Campbell got taken to school by Garrett. No one should be surprised by this. It’s disappointing given where he was drafted this past spring, but that’s when you get when a first-year player goes head-to-head with a legitimate future Hall of Famer firmly in their prime for the first time. Lumps are going to be taken.
The Browns are one of the best defenses in the NFL. Games like this happen. New England is lucky they’ve been able to avoid these types of performances, for the most part, in 2025.
- Keion White: Nine days away from the NFL trade deadline, and the third-year linebacker was made a healthy scratch for the first time in his career.
After popping at times early in his rookie season, White has regressed with each passing week since the middle of the 2023 season. And after multiple weeks in a row this season as an unreliable run defender, Vrabel took no chances with Cleveland’s stud rookie running back Quinshon Judkins on the field on Sunday.
As the 46th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, you have to imagine there will be suitors out there for the 6-foot-5, 285-pound defensive end.
What would that return look like? I’d temper your expectations.
As of publishing, the Patriots are a 3-point favorite in Week 9 as they host the Falcons (3-4). You can get them at -150 on the moneyline, and the total sits at 45.5.
Tune in each and every Monday throughout the football season to Patriots Monday on WEEI. Head coach Mike Vrabel joins The Greg Hill Show at 6:30 a.m. ET, and quarterback Drake Maye joins WEEI Afternoons.