Big Shows & No Shows
Big shows
1. Kevin Faulk — Faulk continues to amaze. The only bright spot on offense, he led the Patriots in rushing (6 rushes, 73 yards) and receiving (7 receptions, 48 yards). His 41-yard run to the Pittsburgh 26-yard line with 1:25 remaining in the half and the score tied 10-10 was an early candidate for play of the game.
2. Mike Vrabel — It was not a great day for Vrabel (2 tackles), but his interception on the fourth play of the game, pulling down an underthrown pass by Ben Roethlisberger, led to the Patriots' first score, three plays later.
3. Tedy Bruschi — Another guy who has lacked in the Big Play Department, Bruschi had one of his better games of the season with a team-high seven tackles. On one third-down blitz he forced Roethlisberger to throw an errant pass. On a weak day for most Patriots, Bruschi's was OK. Welcome back to the Big Shows, Tedy.
No shows
(Note: There were 10 candidates here worthy of mention)
1. Randy Moss — Believe it or not, the Patriots might have had a chance to pull off this win if Moss had made two catches yesterday.
2. Sam Aiken — We hate putting a special teams player on here, but he had two big penalties on special teams, nullifying a decent and a very good return, and a dropped pass when the Patriots were still within two scores. He was the Patriots' answer after Wes Welker went down, which tells you how bad things are.
3. Matthew Slater — The Patriots seemed impressed with themselves when they "stole" the ex-UCLA kick returning star in the fifth round. Well, his muffing of the kickoff in the third quarter, with the score 13-10, unofficially ended the game. The Steelers recovered at the 8-yard line and scored two plays later. It was Slater's chance to finally make something happen and he did. He may have finished off the Patriots' playoff hopes.
Grading the Groups
Offense
Line (D): It just wasn't a great day. While the Patriots showed some semblance of a running game, most of it was out of the shotgun, which usually is against more defensive backs. Matt Cassel was sacked five times and had the ball stripped twice. The Steelers' pass rush is among the best in the NFL, but on this wet day, when the rain might neutralize it, instead it was as dominant as ever.
Backs (B): The Patriots never really gave the running game a chance. Faulk had 73 yards and Sammy Morris had 45 yards. Those kinds of numbers usually mean the Patriots are in control. But a lot of those yards came when the Steelers' defense was in pass-mode.
Receivers (F): Forget about the 19 receptions and 169 yards, it was the plays these guys didn't make that cost the Patriots. Randy Moss dropped two big balls, one in the end zone and another in the middle of the field that could have possibly turned into a TD. Jabar Gaffney again dropped an easy catch on the sideline and Ben Watson (one catch) has basically become a dropping machine. Wes Welker was at least steady before being knocked out of the game.
Quarterback (D): It was the first time in a long time that he didn't come through. He didn't do a good job of reading the outside rush, twice having the ball stripped. He threw two interceptions. Oh, yes, he underthrew several receivers, too. Also of note, he didn't have one big running play, which has been a staple of his.
Defense
Line (D): The good? They were decent against the run in the first half, allowing only 48 yards on 14 carries. The bad? They were run over in the fourth quarter as they tired and the Steelers put the game away. We are waiting for this group, which is touted as one of the league's best, to get some pressure on the quarterback.
Linebackers (C): The Steeler short passing game took over the game in the third quarter. Tedy Bruschi had a decent day while Mike Vrabel intercepted a ball in the first quarter, which turned into a Patriots TD. But Jerod Mayo and Pierre Woods, who left the game with a "mouth" injury in the third quarter, were subpar. This group needs to make more plays.
Secondary (D+): Deltha O'Neal was so far away from Santonio Holmes on his 19-yard TD reception you'd have thought it was a blown coverage. Ellis Hobbs was OK, defending only one pass, though he did make a nice play on a corner blitz, sacking Roethlisberger.
The Post-Game
Turning point
Patriots rookie Matthew Slater's muff of the third quarter kickoff, immediately after the Steelers got their first lead of the game (13-10) deflated the Patriots and their fans.
Slater, who was replacing Ellis Hobbs, had the ball hit off his chest and hands before bouncing about 10 yards to his right. It was recovered by Keyaron Fox on the Patriots 8-yard line.
Moss takes blame
Give Randy Moss a little credit for accepting full blame for yesterday's loss, dropping two key passes, one for a sure touchdown.
"I am speaking for myself. I am very disappointed in my play. Bill (Belichick) says time and time again, do your job," he said. "I put blame on myself because I think this team really looks to me to do my job week in and week out. I don't want to blame the weather. The balls were there. They just weren't caught."
Kicker looking out for a kicker
Steelers kicker Jeff Reed said he met up with a dejected Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski on the field after the game.
"He told me, 'I stink,' " said Reed, who made four of five field goal attempts yesterday. "He was talking about the one he missed at the end of the half (27-yard chip shot). I said, 'Shut up! You're my vote for the Pro Bowl.' "
Reed said Gostkowski told him he got a little too quick to the ball and "toed it."
"I really respect Stephen," said Reed. "He's humble. He's confident and not cocky. He is very strong, which is what you need to be in this kind of weather."
Third-down inefficiency
Patriots quarterback Matt Cassel had been making a name for himself on third down the last two months. Yesterday, was not one of those days.
The Patriots converted a mere 1-of-13 attempts on third down, 12 of them passing the ball.
Compare that to the Steelers, which converted 8 of 16 attempts.
"You have to give it to Ben (Roethlisberger) when it really matters," said Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward. "Third is when you have to make big plays. That's what Big Ben does."
Patriots go to blitz
It worked for a half. The Patriots defensive scheme was to pressure Ben Roethlisberger, mostly on third-down passing situations, with all-out blitzes.
At one point in the first quarter, both safeties, Brandon Meriweather and James Sanders, came in from the outside. On the next series, it was cornerback Ellis Hobbs and two linebackers, Jerod Mayo and Pierre Woods, giving the Patriots extra guys pressuring the quarterback.
Clark: I'm no cheap-shot artist
The NFL will probably be calling Steelers safety Ryan Clark after his helmet-to-helmet hit on Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker with 2:15 remaining in the third quarter.
Clark was flagged 15 yards for "leaving his feet."
"It was not like I was trying to be cheap. Anybody that comes across [the middle] it is my job to tackle them. The ball got tipped, but he said I should not have left my feet. I do not know how to control that," said Clark. "I talked to Kevin Faulk and apologized. I could not find Welker after the game to tell him I was not trying to be dirty."
Patriots coach Bill Belichick and Steelers coach Mike Tomlin refused comment.
"I don't talk about penalties or officiating," said Tomlin.
