Here’s a quick look at how the Patriots beat the Steelers in Pittsburgh.
The Patriots scored early and often, building a lead that they were able to hold on to throughout the second half and beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 21–18.
New England had lost five straight games before the win. It was also Bailey Zappe’s first win as a starting quarterback this season. In the first half, Zappe was great. He threw for three touchdowns and got the passing offence going with some well-placed passes. But in the second half, it was harder to move the ball, and an interception and blocked punt kept things interesting until the very end.
The Patriots’ defence played very well again, making things hard for the Steelers’ offence for most of the game. But mistakes made by the offence and special teams in the second half put them in tough spots. The first turnover led to a stop on fourth down, but the blocked punt led to a score. In the end, though, the defence made the last few stops they needed to hold on.
Here’s what you should remember about the win!
1. Score for the first drive
At the start of the game, the Patriots were on fire. Bailey Zappe connected with Juju Smith-Schuster for a 37-yard gain that helped start one of the best opening drives in recent memory for the team. On the only third down the Patriots had on their first drive, Zappe scampered for 11 yards. Ezekiel Elliott then broke out of the backfield and caught the ball for a touchdown from 11 yards out.
The 2023 Patriots got off to a strange and surprising start to the game, as they quickly took a 7-0 lead over the Steelers.
With a J.C. Jackson interception, the Patriots almost added to their lead, but Jackson was called for pass interference before the pick, which cancelled out the return and kept Pittsburgh’s offence on the field. On the next three plays, Mack Wilson made a sack on third down, which made the offence try a long field goal. It was 7-3 when Chris Boswell made a field goal from 56 yards out. Surprisingly, there were already a lot of points scored after each team’s first drive.
2. Henry Scores, Peppers Picks Up
At the end of the first quarter, both teams punted three times. The Patriots got their interception back when Jabrill Peppers picked off Trubisky and returned the ball deep into Pittsburgh territory. Peppers showed again why he’s been one of the best players on the team this season. He keeps making big plays for the defence and bringing a lot of energy. For Peppers, it was his second interception of the season. His first came in Week 7 against Buffalo in the team’s last win. The safety did a good job of hiding his coverage on the play. He bailed into the middle of the field while Myles Bryant pressed on a blitz, which made Trubisky make the mistake.
After only two plays, Zappe threw a great high pass that found tight end Hunter Henry in the back of the end zone. The Patriots scored 14 points right then, with Zappe throwing his second touchdown of the game. That was more points than they had scored in the three games before this one.
3. The formula that works for Juju and Hunter Still Does
At the end of the first quarter, both teams punted three times. The Patriots got their interception back when Jabrill Peppers picked off Trubisky and returned the ball deep into Pittsburgh territory. Peppers showed again why he’s been one of the best players on the team this season. He keeps making big plays for the defence and bringing a lot of energy. For Peppers, it was his second interception of the season. His first came in Week 7 against Buffalo in the team’s last win. The safety did a good job of hiding his coverage on the play. He bailed into the middle of the field while Myles Bryant pressed on a blitz, which made Trubisky make the mistake.
After only two plays, Zappe threw a great high pass that found tight end Hunter Henry in the back of the end zone. The Patriots scored 14 points right then, with Zappe throwing his second touchdown of the game. That was more points than they had scored in the three games before this one.
Smith-Schuster had a great start to the game. He gained 37, 17, and 28 yards, giving him 82 yards for the season in just the first half. With 14 of 21 completions in the first half, Zappe scored three scores and gained 196 yards.
4. The Steelers Fight Back
The Steelers Fight Back 21-3, the Steelers needed to make a play before the game got out of hand. They did so with a big play of their own: Trubisky threw downfield to Diontae Johnson and connected with him for a 25-yard touchdown while J.C. Jackson was covering him. The Steelers needed that eight-play, 70-yard drive badly, and they only needed one short third-down conversion to make it happen.
These days, the 29th-ranked Patriots receiving defence in EPA has had trouble with big plays. It showed here in the first half, when the Steelers made things interesting with a touchdown from just outside the red zone.
From halftime to halftime, the Patriots had a 21-10 lead. This was likely their best half of football this season.
5. Zappe is picked off, and the defence steps up
Both teams kept trading punts into the third quarter. Zappe tried to hit Smith-Schuster on a crossing route, but Elandon Roberts, a former Patriots defender, made a great play to get a hand on the pass and break it up. The ball deflected into the waiting hands of Mychal Walker, a safety for the Steelers. Walker picked off the pass and returned it to the 16-yard line for New England. The Patriots have lost a lot of games this season because of mistakes. After not turning the ball over at all against the Chargers last week, Zappe’s loss gave the Steelers new life.
After the quick change, the Steelers had a hard time against the Patriots defence, even though they took over so deep in Patriots territory. After a stop on third down, Pittsburgh decided to go for it on fourth down from the New England eight-yard line. The Patriots’ defence stepped up and made a stop, with Mack Wilson making the key block short of the sticks. It was another time this season that the defence helped the offence after they made a mistake. But the special teams…
6. Other Teams Oh no!
After the defensive goal-line stand, New England’s offence couldn’t do anything. They went three-and-out and tried to throw the ball back to Pittsburgh. But the punt was blocked, and the Steelers took over again at the 26-yard line, deep in Patriots territory. They scored their first touchdown when J.C. Jackson was called for pass interference in the end zone. It was his second penalty of the game, and the Steelers didn’t waste their second chance in two trips inside the red zone. When a two-point attempt was made and made, the score was 21–18. Then Pittsburgh scored 15 straight points to make the fourth quarter more interesting.
The Patriots looked like they had the game under control, but mistakes on offence and special teams helped the Steelers get back in it. Throughout the season, the Patriots’ special teams have had problems, and this blocked punt was the worst of them all.
The Patriots’ offence struggled down the stretch and couldn’t get any first downs that would have helped them end the game on their own terms, but the defence kept making the plays they needed to win. The defence provided a much-needed win this season when they were needed the most.
7. The Patriots are 3-10
The Patriots broke a five-game losing streak with this win. It was their third win of the 2023 season, and it raised their record to 3-10. The Patriots were throwing the ball all over the field all of a sudden thanks to some big plays and a surprising rise of Juju Smith-Schuster. Not only that, but they were scoring points, which is something they haven’t been able to do for most of the 2023 season.
Hunter Henry also played well, and he scored after not scoring in three games because it was his birthday. But Zappe’s play as quarterback stood out the most. He was ready to throw early and often, which helped New England quickly build a double-digit lead. The Patriots showed a small bit of the kind of complementary football play that has helped them win a lot of games lately when their offence hasn’t been as strong as it has been over the last ten years. Additionally, their defence played very well and helped set up the team’s second touchdown with an interception.
The Patriots’ offence and special teams didn’t do much in the second half. They only got three first downs and made two big mistakes that could have cost them if the defence hadn’t stepped up again. The way 2023 has gone, it may have been meant to be that way.
While New England stays in second place in the draft, they also get a good win that gives them a break from their season-long problems. After this week, the Patriots have a long break over the weekend. They will then play the Kansas City Chiefs at 1 p.m. next Sunday at Gillette Stadium.
