For years, Pittsburgh had struggled against fellow AFC power New England at home. But with Ben Roethlisberger aerating the Patriots' awful secondary, things were different in the teams' 2011 meeting: Pittsburgh got its revenge in a 25-17 win.
NFL Scores Week 8, Patriots Vs. Steelers: Pittsburgh Deceptively Dominant In
Pittsburgh only beat New England by eight points. But the Steelers’ dominance was deceptive.
Roethlisberger threw 50 times, completing 36, and piled up 365 yards and two touchdowns. That helped the Steelers outgain New England by more than 200 yards.
Of course, the Pittsburgh defense had something to do with that, too: it shut down the Patriots' running game, and forced Tom Brady to beat it underneath. Brady threw for just 198 yards, and his two touchdowns both came as the caps to long drives.
Wes Welker, especially, was limited. The waterbug wideout was held to 39 yards on six catches, well below his staggering season average of slightly more than 130 yards per contest. And no New England receiver hauled in a pass of more than 23 yards.
Pittsburgh scored its final two points on a nutty play that involved Troy Polamalu sliding to punch a Tom Brady fumble out the back of New England's end zone for a safety.
The victory lifts the Steelers to 6-2 on the season. The Patriots fall to 5-2 with the loss.
For more on the Steelers, visit Behind the Steel Curtain. For more on the Patriots, visit Pats Pulpit. SB Nation has you covered for the rest of Week 8’s NFL action, too: check out all the Week 8 NFL news and scores and Week 8 fantasy stats, and Week 8 NFL highlights in our dedicated StoryStreams, and hit SB Nation’s NFL hub for plenty more.
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