Brady Back In Charge Patriots Stop Steelers 34-13

Posted by Jeff Sack on December 9th, 2007 filed in Features, Game Stories

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After two consecutive games where Tom Brady looked tight at the QB position he loosened up considerably leading New England to a 34-13 drubbing of the Pittsburgh Steelers 34-13. The Tom Brady who was at the helm for the Patriots for the first 10 weeks of the campaign, was back behind center against the Steelers. Brady was huge completing 32/46 passes for 399 yards, 4 touchdowns, and no interceptions. With 3 games remaining Brady is now only 4 touchdowns away from tying Peyton Manning’s record for most TD’s by a NFL quarterback in a single season.

The Steelers broke through first as Jeff Reed kicked a field goal for Pittsburgh at the 5:45 mark of the first quarter to give his team a 3-0 lead. New England would take the lead when Brady hit new BFF Randy Moss with the first of two touchdowns at the 1:05 mark of the quarter. At the end of the first New England led 7-3. Brady and Moss then opened up the second quarter much as they had ended the first, with another TD, this one a 63 yard completion coming with less minute gone in the quarter. After the Steve Gostkowski, point after, New England led 14-3.

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger got involved a little later in the quarter as he completed a 32 yard pass to the left to Najeh Davenport for a touchdown. After the Reed point after, Pittsburgh was only down 14-10, and made the game even tighter as Jeff Reed hit a 44 yard field goal attempt, to make it 14-13 at the 2:49 mark of the second. But Gostkowski got the three back with a 42 yard field goal of his own with ironically 42 seconds remaing in the half. New England led at the half 17-13, the Steelers did not it yet, but there scoring was done for the day.

The Patriots would put the game out reach as Brady hit Jabar Gaffney with a 56 yard touchdown at 10:06 of the third, and then spread the wealth, late in the quarter as he connected with Wes Welker fora 2 yard pass and another touchdown. The Patriots would reach their final margin of 34 points, in the final period as Gostkowski hit a final field goal at the 7 minute mark of the fourth quarter.

Roethlisberger did not have a stellar game, completing 19/32 for 187 yards 1 touchdown no interceptions. The Steelers game plan going into this game was two-fold; Keep their offensive squad on the field longer than the Patriots through ball control and using running back Willie Parker as a weapon. The other part of their plan was to have the NFL’s number one defense against the pass, contain the number one passing offense. They were about 50% successful, which was not good enough for a win. They did dominate time of possession having the ball 34:43 as opposed to New England’s 25:17. And Parker did rush for 124 yards, but no touchdowns. New England just did more on the field with less opportunity. New England now 13-0 can clinch home field through out the playoffs with a win against the New York Jets next Sunday. Pittsburgh is now 9-4 after the loss.

© Copyright 2007 thesackattack.com



2 Responses to “Brady Back In Charge Patriots Stop Steelers 34-13”

  1. SeanMC Says:
    December 9th, 2007 at 7:51 pm

    Fantastic game by the Patriots. Loved the way their defense bounced back (0 points in the second half!), loved the way Moss bounced back, and I especially love the fact that Brady make Anthony Smith the whipping boy all afternoon.

    Can’t wait for the Jets game!

    -Sean
    http://bostonsportsrants.blogspot.com/

  2. Ashley Allinson Says:
    December 9th, 2007 at 11:15 pm

    THE FINAL HURDLE?
    New England Patriots vs. Pittsburgh Steelers.
    12/09/07
    7:30pm EST

    If the Steelers were the NFL’s best remaining chance to stifle New England’s run at a perfect season, the feat now appears to be more realistically within reach for the Pats. How did the league’s best offensive match up to the league’s best defense? Here’s a drive-by-drive recap:

    1st Quarter:

    Steelers strike, driving the most successful first-possession of any team in the league this year versus the Patriots… 26-yard FG… 3-0, Steelers

    Pats’ transition game proves itself, again, as league best, countering with an opening-drive score of their own, Moss’ 18th of the season… 7-3, Pats

    Steelers 2nd possession: Sack (loss of 9); On the ground, sets up 3rd and 16… Davenport, the Steelers’ 3rd-down back, back this week. End of First. 7-3, Pats

    2nd Quarter:

    Pittsburgh’s offense falls victim to a New England defensive stop. Ensuing punt, and subsequent 5-yard penalty to the Steelers, lands Pats’ offense at their own 36.
    7-3, Pats

    Immediate Pats touchdown pass, 63 yards, Brady to Moss, their 2nd in 2 minutes.. What’s the secondary doing? 10-second scoring drive. 14-3, Pats

    Pittsburgh returns punt to the 22. Wille Parker gains 30 yards on the ground, 4 more in the air. 32-yard lollipop touchdown pass to Davenport. 5-play, 77-yard drive. 14-10, Pats

    Pats return to their own 26… Three-and-out. 14-10, Pats.

    Pats’ special teams recover ensuing punt. Possession to New England with great field position on Pittsburgh’s 34… Five of Pittsburgh’s last 6 offensive possessions have resulted in a turnover. Pats’ offense goes three-and-out. 48-yard field goal is wide to the right.
    14-10, Pats.

    Pittsburgh takeover possession at their own 38. Pittsburgh converts 4th-and-inches, Davenport delivering 2 yards (on the ground yet in the air) to get to midfield. Separate false-start and holding penalties by Pittsburgh. Rothleisberger scrambles to within 1 yard of a first down. Timeout Pittsburgh. 4th-and-inches attempt converted for the second time on drive…in the air, up the middle to the 36 yardline. Timeout Pittsburgh. 44-yard field goal attempt is converted by Jeff Reed. 14-13 Pats.

    New England bobbles the kick, stranding themselves inside their own 20. Drive to the 37 by the 2-minute warning. Brady to Moss for substantial gain over midfield, followed by a 32-yard pass to Gaffney. Yardage gained is partially negated by a 10-yard penalty by the Pats’ offense.
    42-yard field goal attempt is converted by Gostkowski. 17-13, Pats. End of the first half.

    ——————————————————————-
    3rd Quarter:

    Pittsburgh return to the 29 but go three-and-out. 44-yard punt.

    Pats’ ball on their own 11 yardline. Brady thows 21 yards to Moss, followed by a 9-yard pass to Stallworth. Jabbar Gaffney left wide open in the end zone, catching Brady’s 56-yard touchdown pass. Extra point converted. 24-13, Pats.

    Rossum runs ball back for a substantial Pittsburgh gain, only to be offset by a Pittsburgh penalty. Pittsburgh then goes three-and-out, marking the seventh consecutive Pittsburgh failure at a 3rd-down conversion. 24-13, Pats.

    Pats recover with good field position. 15th-straight completion drives the Pats into field-goal range. Pats attempt fourth-and-one conversion; Pats convert, in the air, to Welker. Inside the Red Zone. Pittsburgh commits a holding penalty, half the distance to the goal, First-and-goal, Pats. Injury Timeout, Pittsburgh. Brady throws, complete, to Welker for a touchdown. The pass is Brady’s 45th of the season for Brady, taking him over 4,000 passing yards. Extra point is converted. 31-13, Pats.

    Short kick is recovered by the Steelers on their own 43. Parker drives the Pittsburgh offense to well within field-goal range, ending the 3rd quarter. 31-13, Pats.

    4th Quarter:

    Steelers attempt a Fourth-and-goal, Hines Ward stifled by the Pats’ defense just short of the goal line. 31-13, Pats.

    Pats obtain possession on their own one. Let’s see if Pittsburgh’s defense really is the best in the league. Brady completes 5 consecutive passes to Welker for 64 yards. Time out, Pats. In the red zone, Moss can’t handle Brady’s bullet into the end zone. Pats settle for a 28-yard field goal. 34-13, Pats.

    Steelers return kickoff to their own 22. Hines Ward reception, 13 yards on third and 10 for a first down. Parker catches for a first down, and follows it up on the ground, running for another first down on next play. Time out, Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh fails to execute, losing their possession on downs. 34-13, Pats

    Pats recover on downs at their own 20 as the crowd directs chants of “MVP!” to Tom Brady and “Guarantee” to the Steelers. Pats’ go three-and-out, however. 34-13, Pats

    Kick off and 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty sees the Steelers recover with good field position, but they run out of clock.

    New England wins their 13th straight game, 34-13. It appears as if great offense beats great defense…Certainly when we’re talking about the 2007 Patriots.

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