First of all, the Steelers moved the ball on New England's defense all game. Ben did not put up monster numbers, but he did what he always does: moved the chains. Where Pittsburgh made a mistake was getting too "cute" on offense. For example, on fourth and goal, the Steelers tried to have Hines Ward run the ball in. No disrespect to Hines Ward, but if anyone besides Ben Roethlisberger is going to have the ball in his hands (near the goal line), I want it to be Najeh Davenport. Simply, Davenport has converted all but one of his third-and-ones and/or fourth-and-ones this season. In fact, Najeh converted two of those short-yardage gains on Sunday. Yet, instead of allowing Davenport to do what he does best (gain short yards), the Steelers out-thought themselves. Thus, their four trips into the red zone only netted one touchdown. And believe me, the game would have been quite different if the Steelers had scored touchdowns on a few of those drives.
Similarly, the Steelers rattled Tom Brady in the first half. Brady was rushed on every play...and his timing with his receivers was shot. This can best be exemplified when the Steelers turned the ball over in their own territory...and then, did not allow the Patriots to get a first down. Again, Brady looked flustered.
Then, with a little over two minutes left until halftime, the Steelers made their single biggest mistake of the game: they played a prevent defense (i.e. only rushed three men). What this allowed Brady to do, was to find his timing with his receivers. 1, 2, 3...pass to Welker. 1, 2, 3...pass to Welker. While it is true that the Steelers kept the Patriots out of the end-zone on that drive, the damage was already done: Brady had reestablished his rhythm...and no one (NO ONE) could have stopped him at that point.
Lastly, Pittsburgh's defense is based on the "bend but don't break" mentality. They had not given up many big-plays all year long. Yet in this game, Anthony Smith bit on two fakes, and allowed New England to get two easy scores. On a side-note, as badly as Smith bit on those fakes, his recovery speed is down-right amazing: he almost got back into position, and was inches away from knocking down that deep pass (to Jabar Gaffney). In other words, everyone who is calling for Smith's head better realize that this kid is pretty darn good...young, cocky, and overzealous, but amazingly talented nonetheless.
In summary, for as much bad that happened on Sunday, there was definitely a silver lining. Pittsburgh took New England's best shot (because, the Patriots were focused)...yet, the Steelers were a few bone-headed plays away from holding serve with them. In turn, WHEN these two teams play again, Pittsburgh will have already seen New England's best, and if Pittsburgh makes a few less errors (i.e. if Pittsburgh plays smarter), the result could very well be the opposite of what it was on Sunday. In other words, if 1997 and 2004 tell us anything, it is that winning in the post-season is a lot better than winning in the regular season. Thus, here is to going 1-1 this season against the Patriots.
