Gillette Stadium had the kind of first-half scene New England fans wanted to see in the home opener: the Patriots up 10-0, the defense living in Pittsburgh’s backfield, and Aaron Rodgers taking punishment early and often.
The hit everyone kept replaying landed midway through the second quarter, and it was as brutal as it looked. Christian Elliss came free off the edge and folded Rodgers in half with a crushing tackle that jarred the ball loose on third-and-7. New England nearly came away with the fumble itself, but a scrambling Steeler finally recovered it well behind the original line of scrimmage.
That one snap turned a routine down into something absurd. What had been third-and-7 for Pittsburgh became fourth-and-43.
The NFL’s own account posted the replay minutes later, and the clip took off fast. One widely shared post showed Rodgers taking the shot up close as Elliss wrapped him near midfield, and the original post piled up more than 320K views in half an hour. The reaction online matched the math on the field: fourth-and-43 is almost never something a team has to face, and even rarer when one defender creates it by himself.
Rodgers stayed in the game after the sack and continued operating from under center, but the Steelers suddenly had a near-impossible decision on fourth down - convert or give New England the ball deep in their own territory.
Elliss has been building a reputation as a difference-maker, and Sunday gave the Patriots another reminder that the defense still has real bite. New England came into the season with plenty to prove, and the coaching staff has dealt with its own headlines this month, including fallout from the Mike Vrabel scandal that dominated national coverage.
The Patriots have also leaned on situational football, and that kind of defensive snap can swing everything. TreVeyon Henderson returned this week after missing the Week 1 opener with an ankle injury, and a defense capable of forcing a fourth-and-43 takes a huge load off the offense.
For one afternoon in Foxborough, the Patriots delivered the kind of chaos that can change a game in a single collision.
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Patriots Suddenly Face A Dangerous Problem In Steelers Matchup
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The timing is not ideal for a defense trying to settle in early at home, especially since the Patriots did not make any practice squad elevations after Davis was downgraded. That leaves the depth chart a little thinner and the margin for error a little smaller, with a division of labor now shifting to players who will have to hold up in a real early-season stress test. [Read more 🡒]