I always find it interesting when people analyze this game andMenenhalls part in it.
It took me till last winter to actually rewatch this game in its entirety. A long time.
First of all.....of course he should own up to it being a fumble. He had possession took a big time hit and fumbled.
In the same situation I am sure most backs would have.
Mendenhall was a polarized figure in Steeler Land. I think most disliked him. Many people seem to put the loss on his shoulders. Unfairly.
They talk about momentum. The real momentum negatives happened far before his fumble. 2 first half int’s one returned for a TD. 14-0. Sound familiar? Many missed passes throughout the game. Yet they were still in it.
Mendenhall 14-63 one td. Did you remember that there was a full 14+ minutes to go in the forth quarter when he fumbled? Of course all was right in the world when Ben got the ball back with a full 2 minutes to go down by 6.
Those last 4 plays were probably the most disappointing plays I had ever watched for the Steelers. With everything on the line. It’s why it took me over 10 years to rewatch. Any other QB in that situation we would say Choked
While Mendenhall had a part in the loss,a much bigger part was had by Big Ben and our pass defense. Rewatching,one of my fav people of all time Troy Polamalu didn’t have his greatest game. Say what you want but AR was shredding them. I couldn’t believe how many dropped passes there were by GB. Wide open.
Interestingly enough I took a good look at the previous game against the Jets.
Ben 10-19 133 yds. 0 tds. 2 int. Gave up a safety. 2 fumbles.
Those stats reminded me of a 9-21 for 123yds with 2 int 0 td SB performance.
William Gay td on recovered fumble the difference against the Jets
Mendenhall 27-121 one td.
Sanchez went 20-33 for 233 2 td 0int.
Just some simple facts and stats.
