Kickoff: Who would have thought these two teams would have the same record going into this game. Alas, here we are. The Patriots will be looking to bounce back after an abysmal loss to the Jets on Thursday Night Football. For the 49ers, they have lost two in a row including a heartbreaker to the Rams last week. The injuries, especially on offense appear to be catching up to them.

Here are four keys to today’s game.

1st Down: Get the ground game going: We saw last week what the Patriots offense looks like when they cannot establish the running game. Offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt lamented the Jets game plan after the game and rightfully so. It was not good. The Patriots need to establish Rhamondre Stevenson and then focus on getting the receivers involved.

2nd Down: Blocking Bosa: The Patriots will have a tough time with Nick Bosa today, especially when he is on the left side. At this point , it doesn’t matter who starts at left tackle for the Patriots. They won’t be able to block him one on one. The Patriots will have to scheme things up from a protection standpoint otherwise Bosa will dominate. I would honestly commit three bodies to his side in any passing situation. Wing alignments, unbalanced, tight ends in, running backs in, chip releases. You name, I’m doing it.

3rd Down: Gonzalez on Aiyuk: With the 49ers missing Christian McCaffery and Deebo Samuel, George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk become Brock Purdy’s primary targets. The Patriots can manage that by sticking Christian Gonzalez on Aiyuk and doubling Kittle in certain situations. Aiyuk has gotten off to a slow start but he is San Francisco’s best receiver today and he will needed to be held in check if the Patriots want to slow this offense down:

4th Down: Better fundamentals defensively: The Patriots were fundamentally terrible against the Jets. They had bad run fits, took terrible pursuit angles and they missed a lot of tackles. The can ill-afford to be this bad fundamentally today on defense. They have to be better otherwise it will be another long day. Controlling the line scrimmage fundamentally today will be a key against San Francisco’s ground game.

Extra Point: This is only the second time Patriots are playing in Santa Clara. The last time was in 2016, a 30-17 win.

The two teams are playing for the first time since 2020 when the 49ers beat the Patriots 33-6 at Gillette Stadium on Oct. 25.

San Francisco holds a 9-5 lead in the series, including 4-2 in home games.

Final Drive: Despite the 49ers injuries and slow start, this will be a tough game for the Patriots to win. New England will need to play fundamentally sound, mistake free football. They must also figure out a way to score some points and block Bosa. It seems like a tall task against a 49ers team that is still better despite their depleted roster. I think the Patriots can make this a game but a win might be too much to ask for.