Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
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Monday, November 15, 2010 12:40 AM
PITTSBURGH - NOVEMBER 14: Wes Welker runs by Ike Taylor during the game on November 14, 2010 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)Where do you start with the Steelers after their embarrassing loss to the New England Patriots last night?
You start at the top with Mike Tomlin. I'm the guy who says execution trumps strategy, and it does. But the Steelers were outcoached -- badly -- last night.
Tomlin was up against the master. A lot of people don’t like to hear that, but it’s true. New England coach Bill Belichick is the best. There’s an old saying that goes something like this: You can’t make chicken salad out of chicken feathers. Well, Belichick can.
He took a young defense, journeymen running backs, a rookie tight, a couple of pretty good wide receivers and mixed them all in with the great Tom Brady and the result was a 39-26 New England win at Heinz Field that wasn’t anywhere near that close.
Defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau had no answer for the aerial circus Belichick and Brady threw at his secondary. They were picked apart. The Steelers knew what was coming and could not stop it.
Brady threw 43 times and completed 30 for 350 yards and three touchdowns. All of the touchdowns went to rookie tight end Rob Gronkowski, who played his senior season of high school at Woodland Hills.
Nor did Arians have any answer for the young and previously undistinguished New England defense. Don’t be fooled by the Steelers point total. They had three points going into the fourth quarter.
Ben Roethlisberger threw for 397 yards and three touchdowns but much of those yards were meaningless. That’s not to suggest Roethlisberger was particularly at fault. His offensive line could not protect him. He was sacked five times.
It’s clear the Steelers miss left tackle Max Starks, who’s out for the season. His replacement, Jonathan Scott, was lacking and there’s no indication he’s going to get better. Scott’s no rookie. He’s been around and is at or near his peak.
PITTSBURGH - NOVEMBER 14: Mike Wallace #17 of the Pittsburgh Steelers drops the ball in the endzone under pressure from Brandon Meriweather #31 and Kyle Arrington #27 of the New England Patriots on November 14, 2010 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)The schedule lightens up a bit in the weeks ahead but the Steelers need to find some answers. The Patriots gave all future opponents the game plan to use against the Steelers: pass, pass, pass.
Not every team has a Brady, but, as was shown last season, it doesn’t take a Brady to break down the Steelers secondary.
The Steelers lack of depth at wide receiver hurt them. Hines Ward suffered a concussion in the first quarter and did not return. That left one receiver the Patriots had to respect, Mike Wallace. He caught right balls for 136 yards and two touchdowns, but they all came late.
In one of the biggest plays of the game, Wallace dropped a pass in the end zone in the second quarter with the Steelers trailing, 10-0. They had to settle for a field goal.
Even one of the Steelers strengths was absent. The team mounted a feeble pass rush against Brady. He was not sacked as the New England line kept James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley away from its quarterback.
Kicker Jeff Reed continued his downward trend by missing a 26-year field goal.
The Steelers lost in every phase. They need to regroup quickly. Oakland, no longer a doormat, comes to Heinz Field next week with a 5-4 record and tied for first in the AFC West. What once looked like a breather for the Steelers all of a sudden become a must-win game for the Steelers.
There figure to be a lot of those the rest of the way.
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