What Went Right, What Went Wrong

What went right, wrong vs. the Patriots

Sep 08, 2019 at 11:00 PM

Bob Labriola

Steelers.com

The highs and lows of the Steelers regular season opener at the New England Patriots.

COIN TOSS: Steelers call tails. It's tails. Steelers elect to defer. The Patriots get the football first.

8:27 p.m. – What Went Right: The same team that in 2002 had Tom Brady pass on 27 of 30 snaps in the first half, opened the game with five straight runs, and those played netted the Patriots one first down and then a third-and-10 from their own 35-yard line. When Brady threw incomplete for Julian Edelman, New England punted, and the Steelers took over at their 12-yard line with 11:54 left in the first quarter.

8:35 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Steelers also opened with a run-heavy offensive plan. Five of the first six plays were runs, with the sixth being a 7-yard pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster, and the Steelers gained three first downs and punched the ball out to the 39-yard line. From there, Ben Roethlisberger took a shot deep down the field to Johnny Holton, who appeared to be held by CB Jonathan Jones. No penalty was called, and after Jordan Berry's 43-yard punt, the Patriots began their second possession at their 18-yard line.

8:43 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Patriots needed 3:08 of game time to take a 7-0 lead when their second possession covered 82 yards in seven plays with the touchdown coming on a 20-yard pass to Josh Gordon. The big play on the drive came one snap after Tom Brady converted a third down with an 8-yard pass to Phillip Dorset,. On the next snap, Brady threw a backward pass to Julian Edelman, who then threw the ball back across the field to James White, who was escorted by a few offensive lineman for a 32-yard gain to the Steelers 20-yard line. The Patriots led, 7-0, with 4:46 left in the first quarter.

9:05 p.m. – What Went Wrong: New England got good field position for its second scoring drive when Jordan Berry's second punt was returned 20 yards by Gunner Olszewski to the New England 38-yard line. From there, the Patriots marched 55 yards in 12 plays to set up a 35-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski that upped New England's lead to 10-0 with 11:32 remaining in the second quarter. On a third-and-goal from the 9-yard line, pressure from Cam Heyward forced Tom Brady to throw an incomplete pass that had the Patriots settle for a field goal.

9:10 p.m. – What Went Wrong: After the Patriots field goal, the Steelers offense went three-and-out when James Conner was stopped for no gain on a third-and-1, and after the punt, the Patriots started at their own 35-yard line with 10 minutes remaining in the second quarter.

9:15 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers defense returned the three-and-out favor on the Patriots next series. After Sony Michel gained 3 yards on a first down run, good pressure on Tom Brady on consecutive pass attempts caused him to throw a couple of incompletions. With 9:12 left in the first half, the Steelers took over at their 30-yard line following the New England punt.