Tuesday, I wrote about Bill Belichick's tarnished legacy and got the full-court pushback from Patriots fans. One thing they reminded me is just how great his defensive game plan was for the Giants in Super Bowl XXV. I had forgotten about Belichick's brilliance in devising that game plan, but thanks to angry Patriots fans I was reminded of it ... and the beauty of it is this:
That defensive game plan is exactly what the Steelers should use Sunday against the Patriots, and I'll go one step further: They should use the Giants' game plan on offense, as well.
What am I talking about? Let's start with the defense. Belichick's plan was simple: load up against the pass, allowing Thurman Thomas to have some success running the ball. The more carries Thomas got, the fewer passes Jim Kelly would throw, and that would keep the score manageable. The Giants had backup quarterback Jeff Hostetler and weren't an explosive offensive team. The Steelers will have backup quarterback Landry Jones playing this weekend, so they aren't going to be an explosive offensive team. That doesn't mean they can't score points, but like Belichick said about the Bills heading into the Super Bowl, the Steelers don't want to get into a game where Tom Brady gets hot and throws the ball 45 times.
If the Steelers can somehow load up and stop Brady from making plays in the passing game, well, then that means the Patriots _ who, I've been told many times in the past 24 hours, have the smartest coaching staff in the NFL _ will continue to feed the running game. They will have success running the ball against the Steelers' coverage defense (like a three-man rush with eight men in coverage), and that will be OK, provided the Steelers can tighten up in the red zone and force field goals. But the more the ball is run, the more time will go off the clock, meaning fewer possessions and fewer opportunities for Brady to make Brady-like plays in the passing game.
A lower-scoring game is going to give the Steelers a chance to win because they still have enough weapons around Jones to make plays and score some points. A game where the winning team doesn't get beyond say, 21 points, is a game the Steelers have a chance to win. That only happens if Keith Butler can channel his inner-Belichick and force Brady to hand off the ball.
That brings me to the other point. Belichick's brilliance wouldn't have worked had the Giants offense not possessed the ball for 40 minutes. With added possessions, the Bills would have scored too many points for the Giants to catch them and win. That really is crucial for the Steelers, so Jones needs to feed Le'Veon Bell as many times as possible. The more possessions Brady gets, the worse it is for the Steelers, even if they slow him down.
With DeAngelo Williams as Bell's backup, the Steelers won't miss much of a beat when Bell needs a rest. The two of them should work together to wear down the Patriots and help the Steelers play keep-away. The Steelers are a big-play offense with Roethlisberger, but with Jones, considering the quarterback they are facing, they need to become a time-of-possession team.
Tuesday, I would have said there's no chance the Steelers beat the Patriots, but thanks to Belichick's old game plan and the fans who pointed it out, well, I now believe there is hope.
.png?w=600)
