As the New England Patriots prepare for their Week 12 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals, a surprise may be brewing at quarterback for the home te

USA Today's NFL experts make their picks for a Week 12 showdown between the Cincinnati Bengals and New England Patriots

The Patriots had good news as Kayshon Boutte and Christian Elliss were full participants on Wednesday, while Rhamondre Stevenson was limited.

The Patriots currently lead the all-time series against the Cincinnati Bengals by an 18-10 margin. They won the last game between the two teams in the season-opener last year, when Jerod Mayo made his head coaching debut. The rematch will be very different with Drake Maye at quarterback and Mike Vrabel as the Patriots' head coach.

It's no secret that the Patriots have a soft schedule. The question is whether that will matter in the playoffs.

The New England Patriots are still surging heading into Week 12, with a 9-2 record and another win expected against the 3-7 Cincinnati Bengals. In their most recent NFL Power Rankings, The Athletic ranked the Patriots fifth after a sixth-place appearance last week.

The irony, of course, is that the 2018 Patriots team beat McVay in his first trip to the Super Bowl as head coach of the Rams. Oddly enough, that Patriots team dominated McVay's Rams in the Super Bowl not because of the offense but because of the defense.

Could the Patriots lose an assistant to a head-coaching job this offseason? Yes, and it’s not one of their coordinators, according to the NFL Network.