5 things we learned: Steelers' loss stands apart from others in AFC North

5 things we learned from Patriots 17, Steelers 14:

1. Northern exposure

One consolation for the Steelers as they head into a new work week: they still occupy first place in the AFC North.

Another is, that unlike two other division rivals, they didn’t blow a big lead in the fourth quarter.

While the Steelers never held a lead in their home opener against New England, the Cleveland Browns frittered away a 13-point advantage in the fourth quarter at home and lost to the New York Jets, 31-30, on a touchdown pass with 22 seconds left. As that was taking place, the Baltimore Ravens were falling apart at home against the Miami Dolphins.

Leading 28-7 at halftime and 35-14 entering the fourth quarter, the Ravens gave up four touchdowns in the final 15 minutes, including the game-winner with 14 seconds left in a 42-38 loss.

Instead of looking up in the standings at the Browns and Ravens, the Steelers are tied for first with those teams at 1-1.

It could be worse considering the defending AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals lost for the second consecutive week on the final play of the game. After rallying from a 17-3 deficit at Dallas and tying the score with 3:45 to play, the Bengals lost on a 50-yard field goal as time expired.

The Steelers offense closed the game with a pair of 3 and outs, and Diontae Johnson expressed frustration on the field after one of them pic.twitter.com/PRI3Mk8pEY

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) September 18, 2022

2. Short sighted

A week after averaging 4.9 yards per pass play against Cincinnati, Mitch Trubisky averaged 4.2 yards in another game that was devoid of big plays for the Steelers offense.

Consider that the second-longest play from scrimmage was an 18-yard end around to Gunner Olszewski in the third quarter on the only touchdown drive of the game. The longest play was a 23-yard pass to George Pickens late in the first half after the Patriots took a 10-3 lead with 22 seconds left.

The Patriots, with Tom Brady long gone and the team’s glory days not far behind, averaged 7.2 yards per pass play. This figure was buoyed by the 44-yard touchdown pass from Mac Jones to Nelson Agholor.

More Steelers coverage:

• Sluggish Steelers drop home opener to Patriots
• Steelers vs. Patriots: What they're saying in New England after win
• Mitch Trubisky’s home opener for Steelers much like his tenure with Bears
• Steelers held without a sack in first game without injured OLB T.J. Watt
• Gunner Olszewski’s muffed punt vs. former team proves crucial in Steelers’ loss
• Minkah Fitzpatrick with another takeaway; Devin Bush leaves with injury

Aside from a 17-yard completion to Diontae Johnson, Trubisky’s other long pass plays came on checkdowns to Najee Harris for 14 and 13 yards. Johnson also had a 13-yard catch but averaged 9.5 yards on six receptions.

The reluctance to throw deep also is impacting the running game as Harris averaged 3.3 yards per carry and had a long run of 8 yards.

3. Snap decisions

The Steelers played almost the entire game with an extra defensive back on the field, and the recipient of the playing time was Levi Wallace, who logged 59 out of a possible 68 snaps. His participation came at the expense of Arthur Maulet, who was on the field for just eight snaps. Tre Norwood played six snaps as the Steelers concentrated on stopping the run.

Playing their first game without T.J. Watt, the Steelers also were creative in how they aligned the defensive front. Rookie DeMarvin Leal played 16 snaps while playing on the edge as a pass rusher. Cam Heyward also was used in a similar fashion when the Steelers had three down linemen, two inside linebackers and one outside linebacker on the field.

Alex Highsmith, not surprisingly, played 57 snaps while shutting between the left and right outside linebacker spots. Of the other outside linebackers that dressed — Malik Reed, Jamir Jones and Delonte Scott — Reed started and played 45 snaps. Scott was on the field for seven plays and Jones six.

4. Booting up

On a day when the bad (Gunner Olszewski’s muffed punt) outweighed the good (Chris Boswell’s two field goals) on special teams, punter Pressley Harvin III quietly continued to put his shaky rookie season in the rearview mirror.

On four punts, Harvin had a net average of 41.3 yards, which was 3.3 yards higher than 2021 when he ranked No. 29 in the league with a 38.0 net total. This came on the heels of Harvin averaging 42.1 yards per punt against the Bengals.

On his first attempt, Harvin boomed a 69-yarder that went into the end zone for a touchback. On his second, he tried to pin Myles Bryant — Olszewski’s replacement with the Pats — with a 55-yarder “coffin corner” boot that was fielded near the right sideline. Bryant had a 16-yard return, but it’s hard to imagine Harvin getting better placement on his punt.

More from Tim Benz and Mark Madden:

• Tim Benz: 'Airing of Grievances' as Steelers struggle in all phases against Patriots
• First Call: What in the world happened in the AFC North on Sunday?
• Madden Monday: 'Steelers offense has the stench of death. ... They should fire Matt Canada'
• Mark Madden: Steelers offense has limitations, but Matt Canada deserves blame, too

Harvin’s third punt had a net average of 35 yards and gave the Patriots the ball at the 50. On his final punt, he sent a 43-yarder to the Patriots 29.

5. Fewer flags

The Steelers were penalized just three times for 20 yards. It included one personal foul, but it came at an inappropriate time.

After Olszewski fumbled away his muffed punt at the Steelers 20, rookie tight end Connor Heyward was flagged for unnecessary roughness. This moved the ball to the 10, and the Patriots scored a touchdown three plays later to take a 17-6 lead.

The other two penalties were a delay of game call and a false start by Dan Moore. Each came in the second quarter. It was an improvement from the opener when the Steelers were penalized eight times for 59 yards and Minkah Fitzpatrick was hit with a pair of unnecessary roughness calls.