It’s like deja vu all over again.
Once again, the New England Patriots (9-4) meet at Heinz Field to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5-1) in a matchup with major playoff implications on the line.
The Patriots are coming off a crippling last-second loss to the Miami Dolphins last week that should test the teams’ ability to flip the page.
The problem is however, is that Pittsburgh is coming off a loss of its own, as it fell to the lowly Oakland Raiders due to a blocked field goal on the last play of the contest.
While Patriot fans may feel this is a must-win game, the reality is that Pittsburgh needs it more, especially with the Baltimore Ravens on its heels in the division and a tough game looming against the New Orleans Saints next week.
Tom Brady is 8-2 against the Steelers in his career during the regular season, and has won his last two games on the road during the last two seasons.
Stephon Gilmore will more than likely cover JuJu Smith-Schuster, while the combination of Jason and Devin McCourty will look to keep Antonio Brown in check.
Former Patriots’ running back Stevan Ridley has been vocal about his desire for revenge this week. New England has been hurt by old friends in the backfield this year, as Brandon Bolden (two touchdowns) and Dion Lewis (68 total yards) has had success against a struggling rush defense that is allowing nearly five yards per rush.
The key for the Patriots will be to control the clock on offense to try and take the crowd out of the game in a hostile environment. Despite the missed tackle to end the game last week, tight end Rob Gronkowski had a nice offensive showing against the Dolphins, as he hauled in eight receptions for 107 yards and a touchdown. He has had success against Pittsburgh in the past, as he dominated with nine receptions for 168 yards last year in the 27-24 victory. He has not been able to put string together good back-to-back performances this year, so it will be something to look at for.
While on defense, they have to get after Ben Roethlisberger, who is prone to giving up costly turnovers, especially in the redzone. Pittsburgh running back James Connor is listed as doubtful, which could be a noticeable loss on offense for the hosts. Nobody was listed on the injury report for the Patriots on Friday.
Similar to last year, this will more than likely come down to the last possession of the game with two teams that are evenly matched and are gunning for the playoffs.
