Patriots
“Two moribund, point-deficient offenses against stingy defenses, which should make for another game devoid of touchdowns and plenty of punts.”
COMMENTARY
There is a bit of 2019 Patriots in the 2023 Pittsburgh Steelers.
-
Patriots rule out Demario Douglas, 4 others for Thursday’s game vs. Steelers
-
The Patriots’ and Steelers’ offenses are equally abysmal. Why is Pittsburgh 7-5, and New England 2-10?
Well, Kenny Pickett isn’t exactly a six-time Super Bowl champ on his way out the door, and the Pittsburgh defense, anchored by T.J. Watt, has been more dependable than the illustrious “boogeymen” of New England. But in terms of the team’s record not being illustrative of the type of team you’ve really become, there’s a comparison to be made.
The 2019 Patriots were at the beginning of the end, a year when drafting mistakes really began to affect the product that we tolerate on the field today. The Steelers are building toward…something. But like the Pats from four years ago, they are nowhere near as good as their 7-5 record might indicate. The two-win Patriots have scored a whopping 16 touchdowns this season. Only the Jets (13) have fewer.
The Steelers have only scored 18, despite having an offense with talent that dwarfs what they have in New England. A lot of that has to do with former offensive coordinator Matt Canada‘s tomfoolery, but still, aside from one afternoon burst, the offense hasn’t been fixed since his firing.
In other words, if you want to remember the glory days of this rivalry, dust off the DVDs. This is Thursday night between two of the worst offensive teams in the game.
Cue the sports radio yakkers who can’t figure out the simple process of pushing a button on their TV remote to watch the game. Here are the picks.
This week’s predictions:
Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Steelers 12, Patriots 6. “Two moribund, point-deficient offenses against stingy defenses, which should make for another game devoid of touchdowns and plenty of punts. The Patriots, though, top both categories. They have scored just 13 points in their past three games, becoming the first team in the Super Bowl era to lose three consecutive games despite allowing 10 points or fewer in each. The Steelers have not scored more than one touchdown in the past three games, seven times overall. Maybe the change at quarterback will provide different results.”
Globe staff: Four of six pick New England (+6).
Greg Cote, Miami Herald: Steelers 17, Patriots 13. “It happens, but it’s as rare as me turning down dessert: An NFL over/under below 30 total points. That’s where we are for Thursday night’s Week 14 kickoff with Pats-Steelers set at 29 1/2. It’s the combination of two awful offenses, both with QB tumult, and two can-be-pretty-good defenses trying to keep their season afloat. The difference is, New England is in tank-mode and playing for a high draft pick while Pittsburgh still is fighting for a playoff spot….First team to 10 points wins?”
Sam Farmer, Los Angeles Times: Steelers 13, Patriots 6. “New England’s defense is playing pretty well but that Patriots offense is awful. Pittsburgh’s offense is nothing special — no more than 16 points in any of the last three games — but it’s fractionally better.”
Pete Prisco, CBS Sports: Steelers 23, Patriots 6. “The Patriots can’t score, which is not a good thing against a Steelers defense that will be angry coming off a disappointing loss to the Cardinals. The Steelers will have Mitch Trubisky at quarterback, and he’s better than Bailey Zappe and gang or whoever Bill Belichick plays at quarterback. Look for the Steelers to win it.”
CBS Sports staff: Split (Pittsburgh -6).
Michael Hurley, CBS Boston: Steelers 13, Patriots 10. “There’s a lot of doom and gloom out there. Understandable. But, well, don’t go penciling the Patriots in for a 2-15 season just yet. The Pittsburgh Steelers might be the most unimpressive 7-5 team of all time. Hyperbole? I’m not so sure. I do know Mitch Trubisky is quite bad. So whatever offensive issues the Patriots have, they should be neutralized by Mitch. The Steelers definitely have the better running back duo in Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, compared to Ezekiel Elliott and … Ty Montgomery? But let’s not ignore the fact that the Steelers’ offense overall is just about as bad as New England’s. With Trubisky, it could be worse. I expect a lot of runs and a lot of punts. Whichever team turns it over least will win. That could be the Patriots, so here goes.”
Sheil Kapadia, The Ringer: Patriots (+6). “Bailey Zappe vs. Mitchell Trubisky! This is exactly the type of matchup Amazon had to be envisioning when it decided to shell out roughly $1 billion per year for Thursday Night Football. The Steelers managed one touchdown last week against a Cardinals defense that ranks 30th in DVOA. Kenny Pickett suffered an ankle injury in that game and had surgery earlier this week. It’s unclear how long Pickett will be out, but for now, Trubisky is the starter. As for the Patriots, they got shut out last week in a 6-0 loss to the Chargers. If the season ended today, New England would have the no. 2 pick in the 2024 draft. Only the Panthers have a worse record. The over/under for this game is just 30.5! Given how low that number is, I’ll go ahead and take the points.”
Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News: Steelers 20, Patriots 10. “The Patriots failed to score points at home against the Chargers’ defense. The Steelers’ offense went from revving up to sputtering against the Cardinals. But given the defensive natures of Super Bowl-winning long-time coaches Bill Belichick, either should be OK winning ugly with limited offense. Bailey Zappe vs. Mitchell Trubisky, a battle replacement starting QBs, becomes about running game an defense, plus a few big pass plays. The Steelers are better overall in both areas and will be fired up more to get back on playoff track.”
Bill Bender, Sporting News: Steelers 17, Patriots 10. “Remember when this was the marquee quarterback event in the NFL? Now, you have two of the leagues’ worst scoring offenses – the Patriots (12.3 ppg) are, in fact, the worst. Pittsburgh (16.0 ppg) is not much better and will have Mitchell Trubisky for the injured Kenny Pickett on a short week. Will it be Bailey Zappe for the Patriots?”
It says here: Patriots 6, Steelers 0. If Davon Godchaux thinks the Patriot defense has to hold opponents to zero points in order to win, then how better to accomplish that than against Mitch Trubisky on a Thursday night?
Get the latest Boston sports news
Receive updates on your favorite Boston teams, straight from our newsroom to your inbox.