The Steelers had a touchdown overruled by replay, then attempted to go for the win rather than the tie and turned the ball over to the Patriots.
- The New England Patriots beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 27-24, in a chaotic final minute.
- The Steelers appeared to score a touchdown with 28 seconds left to take the lead, but replays showed the play was actually incomplete under the NFL's controversial catch rule.
- Ben Roethlisberger then pretended to spike the ball to trick the Patriots and threw a game-sealing interception.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots gave us one of the best games and wildest endings of the NFL season.
After Tom Brady led a drive down field in the final two minutes to score a touchdown and put the Patriots up, 27-24, the Steelers answered back with a huge catch-and-run by receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster that got the Steelers to the Patriots' 10-yard-line.
It was perfect position for the Steelers. With 34 seconds to play, the Steelers could try for end zone a few times and settle for a game-tying field goal if they failed.
On the next play the Steelers appeared to score with 28 seconds left when Ben Roethlisberger found tight end Jesse James up the middle for a touchdown.
However, replays showed that James didn't actually catch the ball according to the NFL's controversial catch rule. James bobbled the ball as he hit the ground, making it an incomplete catch since he did not technically "complete the catch" as he went to the ground.
With the Steelers back at it, they made one more play to get to the Patriots' seven-yard line with 23 seconds remaining and the clock ticking down.
Most expected the Steelers to spike the ball, then kick the easy field goal to tie the game. Instead, with five seconds remaining, Roethlisberger tried to fool the Patriots with a fake spike while he threw it to Smith-Schuster in the end zone.
Bad idea: the Patriots picked it off.
Once again, the Patriots found a way to squeak out a win after trailing for most of the game.
The game undoubtedly delivered on the hype as the AFC's two best teams squared off, and surely, the execution, officiating, and play-calling will be subject to debate all week.