Patriots fall short in second attempt to clinch AFC East, lose to Steelers

With the potential for the second straight week to clinch the AFC East and a spot in the postseason, the Patriots came up short as they lost to the Steelers 17-10 on the road.

Poor defensive efforts early combined with close officiating calls all led to the Steelers jumping out to an early lead in the game, as they took a 14-7 lead into the half.

The Patriots trimmed the Steelers lead to 14-10 with a Stephen Gostkowski field goal with just 17 seconds left in the third quarter, but couldn’t capitalize after a Duron Harmon interception in the fourth quarter as Tom Brady threw one of his own to Joe Haden.

A big third-down conversion to Jaylen Samuels provided a big boost for the Steelers with just over 3 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, but the Patriots came up big defensively to force a field goal before the two-minute warning to make it a 17-10 Steelers lead.

Tom Brady got the ball with one last chance to tie it with 2:30 to go in the fourth, and drove the team into the red zone with under a minute to go. A holding penalty pushed the Patriots back, and the Patriots were forced into a 4th and 15 with 20 seconds to go.

In the end, the Patriots couldn't convert, and the Steelers kneeled it to end it and win 17-10.

The Patriots will now have to wait to clinch the division once again, with just two games left on their schedule against the Bills and Jets respectively.

Cox Media Group