...then they got the living daylights beat out of them.
Not just on the scoreboard, which at the end of the game indicated a thorough thrashing dished out by the New England Patriots, the twenty four point victory the result of the Patriots surviving a momentum shift that a couple of errors created for their arch-rivals - then taking the momentum back by stepping on the gas and driving the ball down the Steelers' collective throat.
Tom Brady had by far his best day of season, throwing for 432 yards on a sniper-like 22 completions on 32 attempts, shredding the 4th ranked pass defense in the NFL throwing to six different receivers, three of whom - tight end Rob Gronkowski and receivers Danny Amendola and rookie Aaron Dobson - easily eclipsed the century mark in receiving...
...Stevan Ridley ran for 115 yards and two tough touchdowns and LeGarrette Blount again drove a stake into the hearts of the opposing defense at winning time, ripping off huge chunks of yardage to finish the game with 47 yards on just five carries, including a pile driving five yard touchdown stomp to cap a definative 55-31 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers at Gillette Stadium on Sunday evening.
And it could have been worse.
As it was, the Steelers allowed the most points in franchise history - that's 80 years worth of football - but credit the Pittsburgh run defense for holding Patriots' running backs out of the end zone on two attempts inside the three yard line, and also Troy Polamalu for stripping Ridley of the ball at midfield to halt the Patriots promising looking drive to state the second half.
Other than that, though, the Patriots had their way with Pittsburgh's defense, and their fans finally saw the offense they've waited all season for - and after the upcoming bye week, New England will have back their passing back, Shane Vereen, who is on the Injured Reserved List with a designation to return, giving Brady another speedy weapon to target.
Conversely, the Steelers' offense made things pretty interesting in spurts, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger far less efficient that his counterpart, though his 28 for 48 performance yielded 400 passing yards against a secondary missing shut-down corner Aqib Talib - a good portion of that against a New England defense in clear prevent mode...
...forced to abandon a running game that was productive against the much maligned Patriots' run defense, rushing for 109 yards on 20 carries before the score and time remaining on the clock forced the Steelers to the air - and that's when the beatings commenced.
Brady's four touchdowns through the air were certainly the most aesthetically pleasing scores, as the passing game emerged from hibernation, but the game had plenty for the old-school crowd as well - in fact, the running game dominating in the fourth quarter probably brought a tear to the eye of the elder gentry...
...and the balance between run and pass keeping the Pittsburgh pass rush and coverage honest, turning a game that was tied at 24-24 midway through the 3rd quarter into an unmitigated rout by the middle of the 4th, Brady and Dobson hooking up on an 81 yard bomb - set up, incidentally, by the line dominating in the running game - to put the game out of reach, then Blount stepping on their throats with his bull rush to account for the final score...
New England forced two turnovers in the first quarter, the first, a strip sack of Roesthlisberger on the Steelers first series that ended up not hurting Pittsburgh, though a Devin McCourty interception later in the quarter resulted in Brady drawing first blood on the very next play - Danny Amendola getting loose in the Pittsburgh secondary and taking a 34 yard pass from Brady right up the seam for the early 7-0 lead.
The Patriots second touchdown also came after a Pittsburgh turnover, this time on downs as rookie defensive tackle Chris Jones stopped running back LeVeon Bell on a 4th and inches at the New England 32 yard line - a handful of plays later Brady finding Gronkowski in the end zone for a 17 yard scoring strike and a 14-0 second quarter lead.
The teams traded scores for the remainder of the period, Pittsburgh kicker Shaun Suisham and Patriots' Stephen Gostkowski trading three pointers and Roesthlisberger hitting Antonio Brown with a 27 yard score before Ridley closed out the first half scoring with short touchdown burst as New England took a 24-10 lead into the locker room at the half.
Ridley's touchdown came with just seconds left in the half and gave the Patriots a chance for a two for one scenario to start the 2nd half, any type of score effectively dooming the Steelers, but Ridley's fumble to end the drive set up a Roesthlisberger 20 yard scoring strike to Jerricho Cotchery to get the Steelers within one...
...and a subsequent three and out on the ensuing New England possession coupled with a Brown 24 yard punt return set the Pittsburgh offense up in Patriots' territory again - and again Roesthlisberger making them pay with another scoring toss to Cotchery to tie the game with seven minutes left in the third quarter.
Back on their heels from the quick strike Steelers, Brady slowed things down on the next drive, giving the ball to Ridley and capitalizing on his hard running to retake the lead with a Gostkowski field goal, then getting back on track with the passing game on their next possession, Brady finding Dobson with a pretty back shoulder fade to build the lead back to 10 just seconds into the 4th quarter.
After a Ridley touchdown run created a three score margin, a Roethlisberger pass to Cotchery got the score back to 10 points with just over six minutes remaining in regulation - then Brady's longest scoring pass of the season to Dobson followed by a Duron Harmon interception and subsequent Blount running score left no doubt on the outcome.
Now the Patriots get to enjoy a their bye week, an opportunity to rest, heal and work on personal technique, returning to the field two weeks from Monday to take on the Panthers in Carolina with a two game lead over the New York Jets in the AFC East...
...hopefully with everyone properly healthy and ready for a stretch run that includes not only the hot Panthers, but also the Ravens, Broncos and Texans as well as rematches with division foes Miami and Buffalo.
But with Vereen returning from the IR and with the Patriots offense looking as if they've found their stride, Bill Belichick's annual assertion that his team is built to be playing it's best ball after Thanksgiving looks like it will come to fruition once again.
And that's really bad news for the rest of the AFC.
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