Patriots offense faces toughest test of the season in Steelers defense

November 28, 12:33 AMNew England Patriots ExaminerSean Crowe

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Steelers bring the best defense in the NFL to Foxboro...

The Patriots are thankful for many things, but having to play the Steelers while in the middle of a tough playoff race is not one of those things.

The Patriots and Steelers have hated each other since the “immaculate interception” back in 1997. If you don’t remember the immaculate interception, let me refresh your memory.

The Patriots were in a late-season push for the playoffs. They were in position to win the game. Bledsoe drops back to pass and inexplicably throws the ball right into the lap of Pittsburgh linebacker Kevin Henry. What was once an eight-point lead with 2:10 left in the fourth quarter turned into a three-point overtime loss.

After the game, the Patriots pulled what I like to call the Marshall Faulk plan, which consisted of telling anyone who would listen that they were the better team and the Steelers were lucky.

Which, obviously, wasn’t taken all that well in Pittsburgh.

A few weeks later, the same two teams met in the playoffs. In what was quite possibly the worst offensive playoff game ever played, the Steelers beat the Patriots 7-6.

Since that game, the Patriots have won every meaningful game the two teams have played against each other, including two AFC Championship games in Pittsburgh.

The teams still don’t like each other, but they certainly respect each other.

Just ask Bill Belichick. He can’t sing the Steelers’ praises loudly enough.

“They are very physical. They play the run very well and they are well disciplined and well coached. They have done a nice job with their continuance of having a great scheme. They tackle well. They are fast. They pursue well. They can rush the passer. They can cover. They are good on first down. They are good on third down. They are good in the red area. When half of the possessions against them are three and outs; half of the time teams can’t even get a first-down against them. They do everything well. They have done it week after week against 11 different opponents. They are very impressive.”

Bill Belichick always talks up the Patriots' next opponent. The only difference is, this time he's telling the truth.

The Steelers are the real deal. They’re first in points against, first in total defense, first in pass defense, first in run defense, third in sacks, and ninth in interceptions. They’ve only allowed four rushing touchdowns in 11 games.

The Steelers aren’t a little better than everyone else defensively, they’re much better. The closest to them in points allowed are the Buccaneers who give up almost two full points more per game. The closest in yards per game are the Ravens, who give up nearly 30 more YPG.

Get the point yet? They’re pretty good.

But don’t get me wrong, they’re not unbeatable.

Only two of their wins came against teams with winning records (the Ravens and Redskins). Their offense is below average, mostly due to injury issues. Willie Parker might not play this weekend, and their running game is severely lacking without him. Ben Roethlisberger has a shoulder problem and has thrown as many interceptions this season as he has touchdowns (11).

He’s also been sacked 32 times, he’s fumbled eight times, and lost three of them.

If the Patriots want to beat the Steelers, they’ll have to overcome the Steelers dominant defense and take advantage of their mediocre offense. Easier said than done. Just ask the Ravens, whom the Patriots are tied with for the final playoff spot in the AFC.

Matt Cassel and the Patriots offense have looked fantastic the last few weeks. They’ve been dominant. This weekend, the irresistible force meets the immovable object.

And we get to find out just how far our former backup quarterback and his offense has come…

Sean Crowe is the New England Patriots Examiner. You can email him at scrowe@gmail.com. Check out some of his other work on his blog.