Steelers vs. Patriots: Coordinators Comments
By Kim Myers
The Steelers are in the awesome position of having to rebound from a crappy loss without their starting quarterback to face their main competition in the AFC.
To accomplish the feat of taking down the New England Patriots the Steelers will need positive contributions from all three phases of the team. Not an easy task when you’re playing without Ben Roethlisberger.
The defense gave up some long passes, got absolutely blasted on the ground and surrendered 30 points to a Dolphins team that had only previously won against the Cleveland Browns. Defensive coordinator Keith Butler admitted to Missi Matthews that tackling was a problem, unfortunately again.
He asserted that this wasn’t a situation where he felt the team overlooked the Dolphins, knowing they were facing the Patriots this week. He said the team went into the game with their “eyes open” as opposed to how they were just blindsided in Philly earlier in the season.
Butler remarked about how difficult it is to prepare against an offense that is headed by Tom Brady. He cites Brady’s ability to study defenses and he and coach Bill Belichick’s creative ways of skirting around the rulebook as part of their success.
The defense will be without defensive end Cameron Heyward, who is ruled out for a second straight week and without having Roethlisberger in there to put points on the board.
Butler’s gonna need to get a body on Rob Gronkowski unless he wants to see that dummy in the end zone over and over again list last year’s season opener.