Blame Tomlin: Steelers had chances to beat Patriots without Big Ben, Cam Heyward

The Pittsburgh Steelers faced an early 14-point deficit to the prohibitive Super Bowl favorites, and they were attempting to come back without arguably their most indispensable players on either side of the ball. So you can understand how they’d lose at home to the New England Patriots, 27-16.

But those are mere facts, and as the Talking Heads told us all those years ago, facts are never what they seem to be. The Steelers had ample chances to win this game, and they’ve potentially cost themselves a key conference tiebreaker come playoff time. The doubter might read this statement and scoff. Did you see how many interceptable passes Landry Jones got away with? Point taken. But the Steelers shifted momentum in this game in the first half and had the Patriots on the ropes — more than once.

And what’s most stunning was how it happened: Noted risk taker Mike Tomlin, who often defies convention with his daring risks, went into the fetal position more than once in this game. He refused to do anything close to that in this game, which, um, was pretty important.

Mike Tomlin was satisfied kicking field goals, which didn’t get it done against the New England Patriots. (AP)

After LeGarrette Blount’s revenge-game score put the Patriots up two TDs, the Steelers struck back quickly with a 119-second TD drive of their own. And it almost was a tie game with five minutes left in the second quarter, but a holding call on guard Chris Hubbard wiped out what would have been a Darrius Heyward-Bey score. The ensuing missed field goal was a killer, too.

Even so, the Steelers’ defense tightened against Tom Brady again and got a bit of luck, too, with Brandon Bolden and Julian Edelman dropping easy passes (even if the latter also included a hold). Jones then flipped the field effectively with another drive. This time the field goal was good, but the Steelers had a shot or two at the end zone but couldn’t get the six.

Still, it was clear the drops had affected the Patriots mentally — a rare crack in their typically steely will. They moved backward on their first possession of the third quarter, and the Steelers cut the lead to 14-13 on their next series. But why was Tomlin trying to beat the Patriots with field goals? Even on a day when Brady was good but not great, the strategy was flawed.

The Steelers made it inside the Patriots’ 30-yard line six times in the first 45-plus minutes of the game but could score only 16 points. Then Tomlin completely brain-cramped: He called on Chris Boswell to attempt a 54-yard field goal on fourth and 3 from the New England 36, which predictably missed badly.

After the game, Tomlin said he did not even consider sending the offense back out there.

“I did not,” Tomlin said. “He made a similar kick over a year ago right there in that same spot and [on] the same field when we tried him out, and the weather conditions were worse than they were tonight. We were down there and had an opportunity to make it one-score game, I took that chance.”

 

But there were maybe only about a thousand reasons to go for it there, take your pick:

 

• Heinz Field is historically terrible for long attempts.
• Boswell had never made a kick longer than 51.
• He already had missed a 42-yard try with late in the first half.
• The Patriots’ defense had been on the field almost 12 of the previous 16 game minutes.
• The Steelers were down four points, so they would have still been trailing.
• They had two of the premier playmakers in the NFL in Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown, who was back after missing a few plays with a hip injury.
• Most importantly: You don’t play for field goals against Bill Belichick and Brady, not with a defense that clearly missed Cam Heyward in this game.

 

So, so bad. That’s playing to lose. Stunning to no one, the Patriots drove 75 yards in six plays to put the game away at 27-16, which would hold up as the final score. The Steelers had nothing to lose in this game. Jones showed composure most of the game, even if he ran out of steam down the stretch. But what’s the harm in going for it?

The Patriots killed the Steelers with crossing routes, getting linebackers into coverage and challenging their defensive backs’ ability to tackle in space. It worked most of the game, and the Steelers had to know coming in this was going to be an issue. All the more reason to be more aggressive offensively. Instead, they did the opposite.

You can blame this one on not having Roethlisberger and Heyward if you want, and their absences clearly were felt. But Tomlin going into a shell and playing cautiously was just as big an issue. The game could have been won without those players.