FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — It wasn’t the type of NFL debut Devin Bush envisioned when he was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the No. 10 overall pick of the draft.
No rookie thrust into the starting lineup for his first game expects to be on the wrong side of a 33-3 decision.
Still, Bush tried to make the best of a bad situation.
“It was fun to be out there for the first NFL game against the defending champs in their home stadium,” Bush said after the Steelers’ lopsided loss to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. “It was quite the experience.”
Playing extensively at inside linebacker, Bush had a team-high 11 tackles for the Steelers. That was small consolation considering the overall defensive play. With Brady exploiting the middle of the defense and then finding success with deep passes, the Patriots jumped to a 20-0 halftime lead and pulled away in the second half.
“He was getting the ball out fast,” Bush said. “He was finding those matchups, completing the ball on third down, getting the ball behind the defense. He was checking in and out of run plays, play-action plays and screens.”
Bush expected to be tested by Brady. In that sense, he was slightly disappointed.
“It wasn’t as much as I thought he would,” Bush said. “Couple times, but you have to get off the field.”
The Steelers were unable to do that as evidenced by the Patriots converting 7 of 14 third-down situations. They dictated tempo against the Steelers throughout the game.
“It was more of a communication/execution thing,” Bush said. “That’s the area we need to get better in.”
