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PatsProp Preview – A Must Win In Pittsburgh?

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Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

The Patriots head in to Pittsburgh needing a victory this week to kick-star their season against a Steelers team who won last time out. Pittsburgh will be without their franchise defensive star TJ Watt, who got injured in Week 1, but they still have an intimidating defense, helped along by former Pats DC, Brian Flores.

Patriots To Watch

Mac Jones

Mac was injured in last weeks loss to the Dolphins, but fortunately, post-game tests showed there was no serious damage. He also missed practice on Wednesday with a stomach bug, but was back on Thursday and is all good to go for tomorrow’s game.

I think Mac will have somewhat of a bounce-back against a tricky Steelers secondary, as always, he’s the main one to watch in a Pats uniform.

Kendrick Bourne

I don’t know what the whole situation is with Bourne, but he’s been in the dog house for something. I think it’s about time he’s given some more reps on the field and I have a feeling that he’ll be back to his normal level of involvement tomorrow.

Damien Harris + Rhamondre Stevenson

Harris and Stevenson had a nice start against Miami last week, but their success slowly fizzled out as the game progressed. There is a chance for the Pats run attack to flourish tomorrow, Pittsburgh allowed 133 yards on the ground last week, so both Harris and Stevenson should be fired up for a chance to shine.

These will be a must watch tomorrow, I expect them to share out the carries and targets, especially with Montgomery on IR.

Offensive Line

The line, like Mac Jones, needs to bounce back this week. Along the entire unit they’ve looked less than average through preseason and in Week 1. Trent Brown will be key on the blindside, where Jones got hit a few times last week, I also want to see a more solid game from Cole Strange on the interior.

When this unit works well, the offense performs, when it doesn’t, well, you know.

Matt Judon

Judon can be a real difference maker for the Pats, and against a Steelers team who probably won’t give the offense many opportunities to score, Judon’s performance on the edge will be crucial in forcing mistakes and helping Mac Jones get the ball back.

Pittsburgh Problems?

Mitchell Trubisky

It’s certainly a different era for the Steelers following the retirement of Big Ben, Trubisky doesn’t provide a long-term solution at QB for them and has the nagging trait of being able to lose his team the game all by himself.

If the Pats can make things uncomfortable for him, the offense could unravel quickly.

Najee Harris

Harris is the biggest threat Pittsburgh has on offense for me, yes, they have some decent wideouts, but Harris showed last season as a rookie that he belongs among the top backs in the entire league. He’s dealing with an injury, but is expected to play and could prove the difference for the Steelers.

Minkah Fitzpatrick

The Week 1 AFC Defensive POTW provides a huge turnover threat for the Steelers and will be looking for his next interceptions on the season. Fitzpatrick doesn’t just bring a big presence on defense, he’s an ace special teamer, showing as much last week as he tipped a would-be game winning field goal in the closing seconds of the game.

Patriots Gameplan: Week 15 at Steelers

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With the Chargers upsetting the Chiefs last night, the Patriots are right back in the hunt for the top overall seed in the AFC. Despite a last-second, depressing loss, at this moment not much has changed in the regular season standings. We’re not dead (in KC) yet.

Regardless of the Chiefs, the Patriots let one slip away on the road last week. This trip to Pittsburgh marks the final chance to put forth on the road the same kind of great team performance that we’ve seen plenty of at Gillette Stadium.

The final two weeks of the season are as easy as they can get in the NFL, so this is really the climax of the regular season. Let’s. Go.

Here’s the gameplan for what the 2018 Patriots need to do to culminate their season appropriately.

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A Final Trip to Pittsburgh?

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One Last Trip to Pittsburgh?

At this point, there are few teams that Tom Brady and Bill Belichick don’t have history with. Even occasional opponents like the 49ers, Saints and Packers have all provided at least one memorable games.

But few places stack up with the Steelers, especially in Pittsburgh. Yes, we saw the nightmares in Miami that can happen and three seasons in Denver have come to a crashing halt. But Pittsburgh was the rare mostly-friendly away stadium of a really good team.

If the Tuck Rule was the unofficial start of the dynasty run, the next game was a 2001 AFC Championship that is often overlooked. They were underdogs in 2004 and again hoisted the Lamar Hunt Trophy on their way to their third Super Bowl.

In 2005, critical injuries took down Matt Light and Rodney Harrison, blows that the team never recovered from.

In 2010, the dejected Pats, coming off a loss to Eric Mangini and the Browns, went into Pittsburgh and showed that the end was a distant place. The following year, the Steelers exposed how bad the Patriots defense was. A flaw they’d hide almost all the way through another Super Bowl run.

Last year’s game came down to the final plays, with one of the more notable finishes to any of the battles of the last 18 years in Pittsburgh.

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Patriots Add James Harrison

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You might’ve gotten the impression that I was a bit concerned about the Patriots defense heading into January after my piece from this morning. For those reasons I welcomed the afternoon’s news of James Harrison signing with the team just days after his somewhat surprising release by the Steelers.

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Patshow #118 – Steelers Wrap and Last Jedi Review Special

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We finally get to breakdown the Pats-Steelers! And yes, we dive into the Belichick-Guerrero-Brady love triangle for the three minutes it deserves. The rest is filled with wonder of what happened on the field in Pittsburgh. We also end the show with a 10-minute mildly-spoiler free review of The Last Jedi. It’s Patshow, Star Wars Christmas Edition!

Please show Patshow some love and click our sponsors below, every one helps!

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Film Review: Pats vs. Steelers 10 Notes

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This was one of the more exciting games to dive into once the All-22 game film was released. There were plenty of good and bad plays that were tough to evaluate in the moment. The emotionless re-watch that is the film review sheds light on what really happened.

Throw out the 69-yard atrocity at the end and this was a quintessential Patriots thriller. It should never have come down to any of the “survive the ground” stuff at the end. The Patriots have their weaknesses, like all teams, but once again their steadfast focus in tight games in tough locations allowed them to overcome.

Here are my 10 thoughts on what transpired.

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Pats Posits: From Malcolm Go to Ben Don’t Throw!

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There are some games where you have to forget about the analysis and just enjoy the footballing. The Patriots miraculous 27-24 win over the Steelers delivered on every level in that regard. I never thought the “All Hope is Lost” moment could be worse than when the Seahawks were sitting on the two in Super Bowl 49 about to win, but this game was an even more dramatic turn and victory.

No, this wasn’t a Super Bowl, but it was the absolutely the defining game of the 2017 season and easily one of the best regular season games of the Tom Brady/Bill Belichick era.

The final moments of the game were a blur. A utter Brady-Gronk domination drive capped off by a Dion Lewis scamper and the Pats had weathered the storm and looked almost assured of locking up homefield. Then….a glaring defensive breakdown of (potentially) season-breaking implications. The Steelers score and retake the lead in TWO PLAYS! Then the call was overturned, a tiny glimmer of hope, but still with the Steelers knocking on the door. A great tackle, an ill-advised attempt at a fake spike which even I saw coming at home. Interception. Pats win.

What!? It all happened so quickly I’m still processing it 12 hours later.

The Patriots now sit firmly in the driver’s seat in the AFC, a spot we’ve been in a lot, but one that never gets old. Breaking down a bunch of thoughts on this huge win in the Posits!

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