Sports Illustrated
The 2-10 New England Patriots face off against the 7-5 Pittsburgh Steelers in a Thursday Night Football game that some deem as underwhelming. The Steelers host the Patriots from Acrisure Stadium. Neither team has a set quarterback, especially following injury and poor performance. If you can’t watch the game or just do not want to, have no fear. I will be doing an in-depth quarter-by-quarter recap with some highlight plays.
First Quarter
The quarterback dilemma for the New England Patriots does not appear to be slowing down. Bailey Zappe received the start against the Pittsburgh Steelers over Alabama alumna Mac Jones.
A throw from Zappe to Juju Smith-Schuster gave the Patriots a nice groove and ultimately set them up for an 11-yard touchdown.
In what many people assume is an easy win for the Steelers, the New England Patriots strike first with an 11-yard receiving touchdown from Zappe to Ezekiel Elliot.
During this possession, T.J. Watt caught a knee to the face, specifically the chin, from Elliot. This hit did not seem too much of an issue or concern because he returned for the next Steelers defensive drive.
This touchdown makes the score 7-0.
Mitch Trubisky gets the start for the Pittsburgh Steelers while Kenny Pickett recovers from a tightrope ankle surgery.
The Pittsburgh Steelers begin with a nice run from Trubisky, resulting in a nice first down.
This luck or skill continues for the Steelers where J.C. Jackson intercepted the ball, but it was ultimately called back due to Jackson’s pass interference on Birmingham native George Pickens.
The Steelers drive is ended with a sack from Alabama alumna Mack Wilson Sr., but not before a 56 yard field goal from kicker Chris Boswell to make the score 7-3.
The Patriots’ next possession would not be anything exciting enough to write about. The Steelers follow suit with a three-and-out.
On the Patriots’ third possession, Zappe escapes a sack and throws a tight ball to Smith-Schuster to secure the first down and enter Steelers territory.
Zappe would target Smith-Schuster again but could not snag it, resulting in a fourth down punt.
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Second Quarter
The Steelers would receive the ball on the 15-yard line, and safety Jabrill Peppers from the Patriots would intercept the ball and run it all the way to the 11-yard line.
This interception set the Patriots up for an 8-yard receiving touchdown from Zappe to tight end Hunter Henry.
This touchdown makes the score 14-3.
This crazy performance would continue as Zappe throws another touchdown. This completion is a 24-yard dime to Hunter yet again. This touchdown makes the score 21-3 in the second quarter.
The Steelers would finally catch a break as Trubisky throws a 25-yard touchdown to wide receiver Diontae Johnson, momentarily quieting the booing from the Steelers fan base.
This touchdown made the score 21-10.
On the Patriots’ next possession, Zappe would be sacked resulting in what appears to be elbow discomfort and visible bleeding. A punt from the Patriots would soon follow and the end of the second quarter.
At the commencement of the first half, this Thursday Night Football game was clearly ALL Patriots. After watching the constant booing from the Steelers crowd toward their very own quarterback, I was pretty much hoping for something…ANYTHING to happen in his favor. Thankfully, that touchdown did happen at great timing. Zappe ended the half with arm discomfort, so we will be sure to follow up with that.
Score at end of half: 21-10
NFL
Third Quarter
The Pittsburgh Steelers received the second-half kickoff and desperately needed to score.
Mitch Trubisky throws a nice pass to tight end Connor Heyward, where Heyward hurdles a Patriots defender and gets a first down. Former Alabama running back Najee Harris follows up with a decisive 7-yard run.
Although Heyward had a star-studded hurdle, and it appeared that the Steelers were on track to come out of the locker room with a score, their possession still ended pointless, keeping the score at 21-10.
When the Patriots received possession, it ended with a big sack from Walter Peyton’s “Man of the Year” nominee, defensive lineman Cam Heyward, forcing the Patriots to punt.
Patriots get the ball again after a less-than-exciting Steelers possession, and Zappe throws an interception into the hands of Mykal Walker. This sits Zappe at 3 touchdowns and 1 interception.
This interception is critical because it could put the Steelers back into this game with seconds left in the third quarter.
Unfortunately, Trubisky is met with boos from his home audience yet again after throwing a ball away. On the next play, a third down one, Trubisky runs the football and lands two yards short of the first down marker while the clock winds down to 00:00 left in the third quarter. The Steelers are left with a decision to make.
Fourth Quarter
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The Steelers go for it on fourth and a long two and do not make the first down marker in big part due to Mack Wilson Sr. This play is particularly unfortunate because wide receiver George Pickens stood in the end zone practically wide open.
The Patriots receive the ball on their own 7-yard line and cannot do anything with it, resulting in a punt.
Patriots punter Bryce Baringer’s punt gets blocked by safety Miles Killebrew, allowing awesome field possession for the Steelers on the Patriots’ 26-yard line. If the Steelers cannot convert this into points, this team is trash.
Luckily, after a few incompletions, the Steelers got a touchdown and went for a two-point conversion to narrow the deficit to only three points from what was 18. The Steelers are successful with this attempt, makes the score 21-18.
The Patriots receive the ball after the Steelers score and are unable to do anything with it, making Bryce Baringer come out for his seventh punt of the night. This punt was actually able to make it down the field into the endzone, resulting in a touchback.
During this fourth quarter, Trubisky has been met with far more cheers than jeers so that has got to feel good on his part.
The Steelers did not get their first penalty until the fourth, and even then, it was an extremely controversial call that analysts believe should have went the opposite way. If the call would have went against the Patriots, it would have resulted in a first down for the Steelers giving them yet another chance to tie the game up or take the lead.
During this possession, the Steelers are faced with a 4th and two right before the two-minute warning. They shoot for a long pass and end up with an incompletion and turnover on downs.
In the end, the New England Patriots are able to obtain only their third win of the season with an underdog victory. Although his second half was very underwhelming and almost non-existent, Bailey Zappe wins the battle of the backups.
