Yes we won...but....

17 points against a very bad D. Two interceptions by Ben. Frankly, we should've blown them out. A win is a win. But I'm still not sold on this being a SB caliber team. I've tried to be optimistic. But we barely beat a bad football team yesterday. They had 14 penalties.

 

Belichick has always been good at defensing Ben. I'll take the win.

 

Yes, they repeated the same issues they've had all year and if the Pats don't have all those penalties, maybe the result is different. But, they got the W. Hopefully something to build off of and get some mojo back. No doubt they need to be playing better, hopefully this was the first step

 

1. The Steelers scored 17, not 14. Patriots are 13th in the league for points allowed, which is average, not "very bad".
2. The Patriots are top 10 in defensive turnovers, so 2 INTs are troubling, but not outrageous.
3. You should talk to the fans and the sports writers who, during the past week, were predicting a blowout by the Patriots.

 

Steelers were a mere inches (McDonald getting his other foot in) away from having 24 points which is respectable.

They shut down Juju and AB decently. If Juju catches the ball at the one and didn't get it taken away, we probably win 24-10 as well.

Yes the left points out there via turnovers etc. but enjoy the win.

 

Any chance we shut Brees down in the Dome? Or will we need to score 40 to win.

 

Many of the penalties were forced by the Steelers. If the opposing defensive line is giving an offense trouble, that is going to lead to holding penalties and false starts. The pass interference came from a cornerback who was about to be beaten deep.

 

When the Patriots got to the 11 on that last drive, and then backed up to the 21, that made it a lot harder for Brady to pass into the end zone. When the announcers were looking at the replay, you could tell they were hoping for a controversial call on that flag. After seeing Tuitt being bear-hugged from behind, they were like, "yup, that is a holding penalty."

 

Try harder.

 

Should’ve had 24-27 points but a boz miss and turnover took that away. So be it

 

I guess OP expects all super bowl caliber teams to win each and every game 55-3, it’s not like in 2008 we barely beat a bad browns team or anything 10-6 lol

 

The 2 best teams in the first 3/4 of the season don't look as formidable. Rams and Chiefs were all the rage... and Saints, too. Now it's the Bears, Chargers and Colts. Kinda hoping Saints win tonight vs. Panthers so they can possibly lay an egg vs. Steelers.

 

Yup exactly

 

Sorry. I've been let down so much that I am a negative nancy.

 

This IT off someones helmet is a fluke. The talent is there, has been for the past 2 yrs. Having someone that is smart enough to do something with it is the problem.

 

I’m not buying into the line that the Patriots are a bad team or are done. I still would not be at all surprised to see them in the SB this year. I did not feel optimistic about yesterdays game like many and thought the Steelers would lose like 42 -24. Therefore, i’m going to really just sit back and enjoy the win, although i am still a little concerned that yesterday's win might be a sign of “the end of days”.

 

If : if and buts was candy and nuts we would all have a Merry Christmas

 

The Patriots aren't a bad team. The Steelers have more physical talent than the Patriots. They also have more physical talent than the Raiders, Chargers and Broncos, but that didn't help much the previous three weeks.

The game is about more than physical talent. If the Patriots are making mistakes and taking penalties, some credit for that has to go to an opponent pushing them into those errors because they don't make them often.

 

Unless they screw up royally, they have home games against the Bills and Jets. Which if they lose one of those, then maybe they are done.

They will get the #3 seed unless Houston screws up the final 2 weeks.

Which means they avoid the Chargers or Chiefs. Both teams which have ability to beat them who will be in 5 spot.

They will at least have a home Wildcard game against a 6 seed. I don't see anyone beating them at home. That team is an unreal animal at their place. They hardly ever lose.

So they win that WC game, then they have to go to Houston. They can beat Houston on the road. Next thing you know, they are in the AFC Championship game again. Maybe against the #4 seeded Steelers who upset the Chiefs or Chargers in the divisional round.

Bad part is it will probably be in Foxboro.

So cheer for the Bills and Jet to pull some miracles the next two weeks, and maybe we have a shot to be the 3 seed instead of 4 maybe.

 

I disagree. I can see the Ravens or Colts beating them at home in Foxborough. Harbaugh's Ravens teams tend to play much better in New England than Tomlin's Steelers. Ravens have a good enough defense to completely shut down the Patriots. Andrew Luck and Colts offense can put up enough points to win. Like the Steelers... Colts/Luck are due a win vs. Patriots.

 

Had issues with the play calling yesterday. During the win streak, the calls were much more balanced and not so dependent on Big Ben. During the win streak if the offense needed 5 yards they had a play to get 5 yards. Yesterday, they kept going for the big play when they only needed a few yards. Ball control is so important when you are facing a qB that can take nothing and turn it into something. When they needed the run, they were so predictable. Saw some Todd Haley creep back into the game yesterday and that worries me. The back door run plays worked great yesterday and I think is surprised everyone including the Steelers. I think our offensive line coach is the most underrated coach in the NFL. Some of the assignments, pulling, trapping, and fanning was the best I have seen in a while.

 

To be fair, the deep shot before the field goal wasn't a bad decision. It was a bad throw. I'll take my chances with Smith-Schuster one-on-one against the opponent's No. 2 cornerback any time.

 

We only scored 3 points in the second half. That not playoff caliber.

 

Brees is 2-3 vs. Steelers with
10td
4int
~1400yds.
This is without Kamara & Ingram who Bostic or Bince must stop.