In one of the wildest games in recent memory, the New England Patriots were able to come from behind and defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-24 on the road. For stretches, New England did not look capable of pulling out the victory but in the end prevailed and can now celebrate a ninth-straight AFC East title as well as the inside track for the AFC's number one playoff seed.
Putting all that aside, let's take a look at some of the outstanding performers that made the win happen – and see who earns himself a game ball:
Candidate: QB Tom Brady
Tom Brady did not play a perfect game as he missed some throws and had one of the biggest negative plays of the game when he threw a second-half interception to set up a Steelers touchdown. However, Brady did as Brady does on his team's go-ahead drive late in the fourth quarter: The NFL's best quarterback threw completions of 26, 26 and 17 yards as well as a two-point conversion to put his team up 27-24 with under a minute left in the game. It was vintage Brady.
Candidate: TE Rob Gronkowski
As spectacular as Brady's late-game heroics were, they likely would not have been possible without Rob Gronkowski. The 28-year old dominated the Pittsburgh defense all game long but was particularly effective in the final quarter by catching all four of the passes mentioned above. Overall, Gronkowski finished the game with nine catches for 168 yards and a two-point conversion proving once again why he is the best tight end of at least his era.
Candidate: FS Duron Harmon
New England's defense struggled all game long but when the game was on the line, the man known as “The Closer” stepped up and delivered a season-altering play: Safety Duron Harmon, who registered only one tackle playing his usual deep centerfield role, was a big part of the Patriots preventing big plays (for most of the game) but earns his mention here for his game-saving interception in the end zone. As he has been multiple times in the past, Harmon was in the right spot at the right time.
With all that in mind, who is your choice for this week's game ball?
Poll
Who gets this week's Patriots game ball?
This poll is closed
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4%
QB Tom Brady
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89%
TE Rob Gronkowski
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4%
FS Duron Harmon
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1%
Other (name in comments)