If it were a one off, then maybe, but they've been putting in these performances for years. Just another embarrassing loss away from home to a non-playoff team for Tomlin and his boys.
1) The annual Mike Tomlin choke game is real.
Everyone who follows the Tomlin
Steelersknows about the inexplicable letdowns. They're a routine feature of the team that started back in 2007 -- Tomlin's first year on the job -- when 7-2 Pittsburgh traveled to New Jersey to face the 1-8
Jets ... and lost in overtime. In 2009, the reigning champion
Steelers started out 6-2 before suffering a five-game losing streak that included losses to the 2-7
Chiefs, 3-8
Raiders and 1-11
Browns. In 2012, Pittsburgh dropped games against the 2-8
Browns and 4-8
Chargers.
Matt Cassel's
Vikings beat the
Steelers in 2013 -- and a few weeks later,
Terrelle Pryorquarterbacked lowly Oakland past Pittsburgh. In 2014, the
Browns stomped the
Steelers, 31-10, and the 1-8
Jets also tasted victory over Pittsburgh.
Remember when the Ryan Mallett-led
Ravensbeat Pittsburgh in 2015? Or last fall, when
Carson Wentz looked like
Ben Roethlisbergerin the rookie's third ever start, guiding the
Eagles to a 34-3 beatdown of Tomlin's club?
So, yeah, there's a track record here -- and Sunday's game had all the makings of another egg-laying for Pittsburgh.
It's something I warned about on the Friday edition of my CBS Sports Network show, "Time To Schein."
The loaded
Steelers entered Sunday as heavy favorites (and survival-pool darlings). But the trap was set, with
a Week 4 rivalry game against the Ravens looming on the horizon. And of course, as was true in many of the debacles listed above, Pittsburgh was on the road.
So, it really shouldn't have been much of a surprise to anyone when the 2-0
Steelerswent into halftime trailing by double digits to the 0-2
Bears, eventually
losing in overtime. Tomlin's defense gave up a whopping 220 rushing yards on Sunday. Honestly, outside of
Antonio Brown (10 catches for 110 yards and a touchdown), the
Steelers were pretty much M.I.A.
Tomlin's team is not buttoned up. Again.
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...-steelers-gonna-steeler-tom-brady-father-time
