Pittsburgh Steelers

Patriots pull off controversial, improbable victory over Steelers in waning moments

By The Bryan Times
Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Jesse James (81) has a knee down before crossing the goal line with a pass from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger during the second half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Dec. 17, 2017. The Patriots won 27-24. (AP Photo/Don Wright)
By The Bryan Times

The game many felt would be a preview of the AFC championship game played out like a Super Bowl.

As in, did anyone have flashbacks to the finish of Super Bowl XLIX with how the New England Patriots won? And how must the Pittsburgh Steelers feel after an apparent game-winning touchdown was overturned by replay in the final seconds?

Whatever the case, we’ll be talking about the end of Sunday's game for years. And these teams certainly could meet again with more on the line in the playoffs, only adding to the drama and lore.

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The Patriots held on Sunday for a wild, improbable 27-24 victory over the Steelers following a ridiculous final two minutes — one in which the Patriots took the lead, then appeared to be in a position to lose the game — that ended in Ben Roethlisberger’s late interception to Duron Harmon.

“The ball bounces in weird ways,” Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said. “I'm glad it bounced our way today.”

Roethlisberger hit JuJu Smith-Schuster, who was back from a one-game suspension, for a 70-yard play on a crossing route in the final minute to set up what appeared to be a Steelers touchdown that could have won the game. Tight end Jesse James appeared to score with 28 seconds left, but officials ruled that he did not complete the act of a catch.

One more, a crucial game was decided on the NFL's everlasting, maddening “what is a catch?” debate. James seemed to bobble the ball as he went to the ground and crossed the goal line.

“He lost complete control of the football,” referee Tony Corrente said, via a pool report. “That was the ruling out of replay.”

Corrente added that James “did not survive the ground,” meaning he did not “maintain control of the football” through the act of catching the ball.

Did it look like a catch to the naked eye at live speed? Absolutely. But all bets are off once plays are slowed down, and that's where James' bobble was revealed to the replay crew.

The Steelers still had a chance to tie or win after the James TD was reversed. But they were tackled inbounds on 2nd-and-goal with no timeouts left, and they hurried at the line for one more shot at the end zone before a potential field-goal try. The play looked chaotic and disjointed, however, and Roethlisberger forced his ill-advised tipped pass that Harmon intercepted in the end zone to deal the game.

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This wasn’t a mirror image of the Seattle Seahawks throwing the ball from the 1-yard line in XLIX — but it wasn’t much easier to defend how Roethlisberger handled it.

“Football is a crazy game,” Brady said. “You just keep fighting and fight 'til the end.”

It was a heartbreaking loss for a Steelers team that has ridden the razor’s edge all season, and Roethlisberger will be questioned for how he handled the situation.

The Patriots had only taken the lead with 1:00 remaining after trailing most of the afternoon. Tom Brady led the Patriots on a clutch 77-yard drive, getting the ball back with 2:06 on the clock and two timeouts. Steelers DB Sean Davis dropped a would-be game-ending interception, which gave the Patriots another life, and Brady moved the ball into Pittsburgh territory with three straight shots to Rob Gronkowski — for 26, 26 and 17 yards — in an incredible span.

Dion Lewis scored on a draw with 56 seconds left, giving the Patriots their first lead since the first quarter. The two-point conversion to Gronkowski, who beat Davis on a fade, gave the Patriots a three-point lead. Gronkowski returned from his Week 14 suspension to be a monster down the stretch, finishing with nine catches for 168 yards.

It was incredible theatre playing out in a game that had massive implications on the AFC pecking order. The only shame was that it was marred by controversy and execution mistakes late.

The conference playoff picture has cleared up a bit now following the Patriots’ statement victory, clinching their ninth straight division crown and closing in on a first-round bye in the playoffs, although there’s still work to do with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Steelers still in pursuit.

With the loss, the Steelers' eight-game win streak is over and they fell to 11-3 — the same record as New England, but without the key head-to-head tiebreaker. A playoff rematch very likely would happen at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough.

The Steelers did just about everything to win Sunday, putting pressure on the shorthanded Patriots’ defense all game. Le’Veon Bell carried the load for the Steelers, with 165 yards from scrimmage on 29 touches and a rushing TD. Roethlisberger played well early, racking up big numbers before an injury to wide receiver Antonio Brown knocked him out of the game.

It was a tense, emotional game. The Heinz Field crowd was whipped into a pre-game frenzy when Ryan Shazier, who suffered a frightening spinal injury only two weeks prior, was seen waving the Steelers’ signature Terrible Towel on the stadium video screen. It’s clear that the fans and the players fed off that energy to start the game.

But the Steelers dealt with both injury and insult in the crushing loss. Brown — having another brilliant season and entering the MVP discussion — suffered a calf injury that knocked him out of the game after he failed to reel in a touchdown catch early in the second quarter. The Steelers settled for a field goal to take a 10-7 lead, but the big news was that Brown would be taken to the hospital for further evaluation and would not return.

Brady also was considered an MVP favorite entering the game, and his credentials received a bump despite an uneven performance. After a good start, Brady struggled in the third quarter, throwing his first pick against a Mike Tomlin-coached Steelers defense, a streak that lasted more than seven games. Brady finished the game 22-of-35 passing for 298 yards with one TD and one interception, unable to get much going on throws to anyone not named Gronkowski and Brandin Cooks.

Still, he delivered late. The longtime Steelers tormentor did what he had to do to will the Patriots to victory.

The Steelers played defense against Brady the best way they probably could have: by controlling the clock. They possessed the ball for nearly 20 minutes in the first half, including a touchdown drive after losing Brown that lasted 15 plays, 78 yards and took almost nine minutes off the clock right before the half. Roethlisberger found Martavis Bryant, who beat Patriots corner Stephon Gilmore on the play, for a one-handed TD catch.

Bell had 16 touches and Roethlisberger completed 15-of-19 passes for 182 yards and two TDs in the first half. The Steelers converted 7-of-9 third-down chances and netted 86 yards on those plays. They had the early momentum at that point.

But Brady wasn’t done. He converted a big 4th-and-1 throw to Gronkowski from the Pittsburgh 16-yard line and then hit Cooks for a touchdown on 3rd-and-goal. The missed extra point that followed kept the lead in the Steelers’ hands, 17-16. For the Patriots, the worst news on the drive was that Rex Burkhead (knee) was ruled out after he had rushed for a touchdown earlier in the game.

The Patriots’ defense held, but Brady made a crucial mistake. He was pressured on 3rd-and-2 from their own 32-yard line and Brady threw it right to linebacker Vince Williams — the first pick Brady had thrown against the Steelers since 2005. The Steelers capitalized when Bell rumbled in for a 3-yard score to make it 24-16 late in the third.

Brady led a good drive after the Patriots had flipped the field, but a 37-yard pass to Cooks was negated on illegal touching when he ran out of bounds and was the first to touch it. Brady also overthrew Danny Amendola for a potential TD pass and took a sack on 3rd-and-10 from just outside the red zone. Stephen Gostkowski hit a 46-yard field goal to shave the Pittsburgh lead to 24-19 with four minutes left in the game.

That set up the incredible final two minutes. The Patriots scored and then held on by the seats of their pants with the Roethlisberger interception. It was the kind of victory they've somehow pulled off time and time again in the clutch. And it's the kind of loss that likely will eat at the Steelers for a long time — both for their own mistakes and an official's ruling.

 

The Bryan Times

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