Matthew Slater after Patriots' win in Pittsburgh: "Ain't afraid of no towels now"

BOSTON -- Matthew Slater is always the player on the Patriots who breaks the team down for their big locker room celebration after each and every win. He hasn't had a lot of work this season.

Yet on Thursday night, the Patriots broke a five-game losing streak by beating the Steelers in Pittsburgh 21-18. It allowed the veteran special teams captain to make his first postgame address since an Oct. 22 win over the Bills.

And while the Patriots' social media team didn't share the full speech, a clip was shared in which Slater turned to wide receivers coach Troy Brown.

"Troy, Coach, we've been in this place a lot of times, man," a smiling Slater said. "Ain't afraid of no towels, now."

Indeed, while Pittsburgh is a tough place for opponents to play, the Patriots haven't had too much trouble over the years, dating back to Brown's playing days.

Brown famously returned a punt for a touchdown in the AFC Championship Game in Pittsburgh in January 2002, helping to send the Patriots to Super Bowl XXXVI against the Rams. That was the first year that Acrisure Stadium -- then known as Heinz Field -- was the Steelers' home.

Three years later, the Patriots won another AFC title game in Pittsburgh, on their way to winning a third Super Bowl in four years.

Overall, the Patriots are now 7-3 in Pittsburgh in the regular season and 2-0 in the playoffs since the building opened more than two decades ago.

This latest win won't propel the Patirots to a Super Bowl, but based on the reaction from Slater and all of the players (plus that extended hug between Slater and David Andrews), it provided a much-needed boost to a slumping team in need of something to raise their spirits.