The Steelers and Patriots are back in the AFC Championship Game.
The two teams face off this Sunday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
We’re breaking down all of the key moments and action that took place on Sunday.
The Steelers are in the Super Bowl after defeating the Ravens in the NFC Championship Game and then the Bengals in the wild card round.
We’ll be back to preview the game and discuss the key storylines of the week, which included the Steelers being swept in the Divisional Round by the Seahawks, a key win for the Ravens, and an epic Steelers-Patriots game that we think will go down in Steelers history.
Steelers-Patriot Week 11 Highlights: 1.
The big win against the Bengals The Steelers dominated the game in Week 11, as they dominated the Bengals for much of the first half and outscored them 27-6.
That’s not a great performance by any means, but it’s the sort of thing that can happen with the team that went 6-7 the previous year and just never quite recovered.
It’s a tough thing to overcome, and the Steelers are not going to have the same kind of success this year.
But they are in this game to win it and they’re doing it with a winning mentality.
They have an elite defense and are scoring a lot of points and they are getting the ball to the other team in a lot fewer snaps than they did a year ago.
And they’re getting to play a team that is playing for championships in the postseason.
The Bengals, meanwhile, are playing for a wild card spot.
They’ll have to come back from a first-half deficit to win in Foxboro, but they have some weapons and will have a good game plan.
They’re a team you can expect to be in for a hard game.
But this game will come down to whether or not the Steelers can stay on top.
2.
The best play of the game, the touchdown that set up the win The Steelers took control of the Patriots’ lead in the first quarter.
It was a huge play by rookie running back Shane Vereen, who rushed for 97 yards and two touchdowns.
Verees runs a great route.
He runs good routes, but the fact that he’s the only one of the five running backs in the NFL to score on a play like that is just a great sign for what he can do with the ball.
It showed up on a couple of different plays, too.
He had a few big catches and he also showed off a really nice catch.
We just thought it was a great play by Vereens.
That was a big one, as well.
You just have to make sure that you keep a couple guys on the field, keep your legs moving and just keep going.
There were a couple other big plays in the second quarter, but Vereeen and his touchdown catch were the ones that really caught our attention.
The touchdown was a pretty big play, too, as he hit Chris Conte in stride and the play ended up going for a touchdown.
3.
Why does this Steelers defense look so good?
The Steelers defense has had some tough games this year, including a 31-24 loss to the Bears in Week 10.
But Sunday’s performance was a lot different.
The team played with a lot more energy and toughness than it had been in any game this season.
The defense was playing with a purpose, and that was evident on the defensive line, where defensive end Derek Rivers had an impressive game and cornerback Marcus Gilbert was excellent.
The pass rush wasn’t as stout as it had in previous weeks, but there were also a couple tackles and an interception by defensive end Ryan Shazier.
Defensive tackle James Harrison was solid, too; he had five tackles and two sacks.
The most impressive play of this game, though, was by cornerback Troy Polamalu, who picked off a pass in the end zone that helped the Steelers to a late touchdown.
4.
What are the Steelers thinking about after a rough Week 11?
It’s tough to talk about the playoffs after this game because we know they’ll probably be a top-five team and have a chance to win the Super League championship.
But for the Steelers, this is their shot at a chance.
They will need to be confident going into the playoffs.
They need to get the team to play better, especially after losing a game in the divisional round to the Bengals.
We think they will be a playoff team this year and that is why we have to be positive about them going into this postseason.
They did the right thing by going out there and playing hard in the regular season and they’ll do the same in the playoffs as well, but if you’re not confident, you’re going to take a step back.