Some members of the Pitsburgh Steelers are taking the loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game better than others, it seems. While Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has been contemplating retirement ever since, coach Mike Tomlin essentially said nothing about the club’s approach changes.
While it’s not uncommon for front offices to build teams and coaches to devise philosophies geared at beating certain opponents, Tomlin says the Steelers will do no such thing as a “reaction” to their loss to the Patriots in January, reports Joe Rutter for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The club will look to improve the overall talent level and build depth, but nothing as a direct response to the most formidable squad in the conference.
Whether there’s wisdom in ignoring the Patriots is certainly up for debate.
On one hand, NFL franchises have very little hope in matching the New England’s program, much less exploiting it. The club’s weaknesses are somewhere between “few” and “nonexistent,” so there’s no real building in the hopes at taking advantage of a particular area. And as long as Patriots coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady are there, they’re going to be contenders.
Then again, the road to the Super Bowl goes through New England, and pretending that isn’t true or doing nothing to prepare for that likelihood doesn’t put Pittsburgh any closer to its goals, either. That doesn’t mean Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert should make every move with how it impacts a potential showdown with the Patriots, but not studying at all ideas to improve with an eye toward how they might alter such a matchup seems shortsighted as well.
The Steelers may not meet the Patriots in the playoffs, even on the path to an appearance to the Super Bowl. Still, New England has dominated the AFC for the better part of two decades and have knocked off Pittsburgh plenty along the way. It wouldn’t be a reaction to prepare.
If it is, every team in the league should try to react.
https://www.all22.com/pittsburgh-ste...-beat-patriots
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