Sports Final: What Went Right & What Went Wrong In Pats Win Over Steelers
BOSTON (CBS) -- It wasn't a pretty 60 minutes of football, but the Patriots left Pittsburgh with a 27-16 win over the Steelers thanks to a stellar effort by LeGarrette Blount on the ground.
ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss joined Levan Reid on WBZ-TV's Sports Final to break down the New England victory, and pointed to Blount's 127 rushing yards as the big difference in the game.
"He ran it well, and the key was in the third quarter. The Steelers closed it to 14-13 and the Patriots really needed to settle it down. Blount gave them a couple of runs to give them field positions and [make Pittsburgh] respect the run," said Reiss.
Rob Gronkowski also helped shift momentum in the third quarter with a pair of huge receptions, including a 36-yard touchdown following two big runs by Blount.
"They made it hard on themselves with turnovers and dropped passes on third down, but they get it done and get an 11-point win on the road in a tough place to play. We can nitpick things, but you have to feel pretty good [about the Patriots]," Reiss said of the victory.
As for that nitpicking, Reiss focused on the play of New England's corners outside of Malcolm Butler, who did a great job keeping star Pittsburgh receiver Antonio Brown in check.
"Outside of Malcolm Butler, I thought the Patriots corners struggled. Is this a concern going forward? I've seen Logan Ryan struggle before and then come back and make some plays the next week. I don't think it's a long-range concern, but it's fair to mention that outside of Butler, cornerback play was not at the level you want to see on a consistent basis," said Reiss.
He also pointed to the continued struggles of Stephen Gostkowski, who missed an extra point for the second straight week. But Reiss said it's a good sign that Bill Belichick is showing so much faith in his kicker.
"[Gostkowski] said after the game 'right now I stink.' The biggest thing to me is that Bill Belihcick isn't considering a change," said Reiss. "He said 'we're going to work through it,' and almost gave [Gostkowski] an olive branch in saying it was a difficult place to kick. When was the last time you heard Bill Belichick do that for a player? Not that often. Part of it is Stephen Gostkowski is still a good kicker but he's obviously working through something. They want to help him through it. I thought the answer from Belichick was telling."
Check out the full segment in the video above, and tune in to Sports Final every Sunday night at 11:35 p.m. on WBZ-TV!