FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots headed to Heinz Field last December with the hopes of rebounding from the Miami Miracle and clinching yet another AFC East title.
Instead, they were left licking their wounds after the Pittsburgh Steelers prevailed 17-10, handing the Patriots their second consecutive loss and putting their bid of a first-round playoff bye in jeopardy.
Of course, New England wound up regaining its balance and charging all the way to another Super Bowl championship. The Patriots did not lose again after their Steel City stinker, closing out the 2018 season with five consecutive victories.
But despite the eventual outcome, that Week 15 defeat still resonates with Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who tossed a costly and ill-advised fourth-quarter interception and led an offense that managed just three points over the final three quarters.
“It was obviously not one of our most well-played games,” Brady recalled Wednesday as New England continued its preparations for Sunday night’s Pats-Steelers season opener at Gillette Stadium. “We had opportunities there in the red area late in the game twice and came away with no points. We set ourselves back quite a bit in long-yardage situations. All of the self-inflicted errors. The interception I threw was a really bad play, and we had our chances.
“This is a team if you get opportunities like that, you have to put points on the board. You have to take advantage of the opportunities you get. If you don’t, they’re too good. They’ve got too many good players, too many good coaches, a great scheme that puts a lot of pressure on you. So we’re going to need to play a great 60 minutes in all three phases.
“That’s really what they are. They’re one of the best teams in the AFC. They prove that year after year, and we’re going to be tested right off the bat.”
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Last year’s loss snapped a streak of five consecutive Patriots victories in the series between two of the AFC’s perennial front-runners. New England is 11-4 overall against Pittsburgh during the Brady/Bill Belichick era and 5-1 at Gillette, with its lone home loss coming during the Matt Cassel season in 2008.
Brady never has lost to the Steelers on his home field.
“We’ve had a great rivalry against those guys and played a lot of meaningful games,” Brady said. “We played at their stadium quite a bit the last few years, so it’s good to get them here. We’ve got a great home crowd that puts a lot of pressure on their offensive side of the ball to make their communication really solid. But they’re a great football team.”
