Patriots-Steelers showdown received an unexpected prelude Monday night in Miami

Tom Brady and the Patriots took a surprising loss before their Steelers showdown. (Steve Mitchell/USA Today)

Two weeks ago, Steelers Coach Mike Tomlin spoke as though he was looking ahead to the Steelers-Patriots showdown next Sunday. On Monday night, the Patriots played like it.

This week’s edition of “Monday Night Football” provided an unexpected prelude to the most anticipated regular-season game of the year. The Miami Dolphins were not supposed to be part of the discussion Tuesday morning, as hype mounted for the collision of AFC powerhouses. But here we are. The Dolphins manhandled the Patriots, beating them up more thoroughly than the 27-20 final score indicated and altering the tenor and the stakes for next weekend’s clash.

The AFC became the Steelers’ for the taking in clearer fashion. If they can beat the Patriots at Heinz Field on Sunday, they will clinch home-field advantage for the duration of the playoffs. New England will have to play its regulars through Week 17 now, even if they beat the Steelers and take the inside track to the top seed.

It would be unwise to downgrade the Patriots over Monday night’s result. They played without their best pass rusher (Trey Flowers), best offensive weapon (Rob Gronkowski) and most versatile defensive player (Kyle Van Noy). They played in Miami, a special kind of hell for Tom Brady his entire career. Brady fell to 7-9 at Miami, a bizarre outlier — 16 percent of his career regular-season losses have come in South Florida.

Still, the way the Dolphins throttled New England could have only inspired confidence in Pittsburgh. The Patriots failed to convert a single third down. The Dolphins overwhelmed the Patriots’ offensive line, and their cornerbacks suffocated the Patriots’ wide receivers, even the explosive Brandin Cooks. The Patriots played terribly, but a fair amount of credit belonged to Miami. Jay Cutler was efficient. Cornerback Xavien Howard looked like a future star. Running back Kenyan Drake gained 175 total yards, explosive and elusive.

[Ndamukong Suh wanted to make Patriots QB Tom Brady mad on ‘Monday Night Football’]

That the Patriots had a relevant onside kick with a minute left is a testament to their sturdiness. But the Dolphins physically dominated them. Brady played for much of the night as if he prioritized not getting hurt over advancing the ball. The Steelers received a fresh lesson in how to beat Brady: Create pressure up the middle without blitzing. After the night left guard Joe Thuney had, Steelers defensive tackle Cam Heyward seems like a key figure.

Whatever questions swirl around New England this week, the Steelers will feel more pressure Sunday. The Patriots thrashed Pittsburgh, 36-17, in last year’s AFC championship game after leading by 27 late in the fourth quarter. The Steelers have known all offseason and all fall a potential Super Bowl would run through the Patriots. In his career, Ben Roethlisberger is 4-7 against New England. He has lost four straight, and his last win came in 2011.

The game means more to Pittsburgh, and the Steelers aren’t even hiding from it. Two weeks ago, Tony Dungy asked Tomlin, in an NBC interview, to assess the matchup against the Patriots. For NFL coaches, looking ahead to lunch at 11:15 a.m. is verboten. But Tomlin felt comfortable with Dungy, a longtime friend and mentor, and acquiesced with honesty.

“Man, I’m going to embrace the elephant in the room,” Tomlin said. “It’s going to be fireworks. It’s probably going to be part one, and that’s going to be a big game. But, probably, if we’re both doing what we’re supposed to do, the second is really going to be big. And what happens in the first is going to set up the second one, and determine the location in the second one.”

The Steelers will have to make a massive adjustment from their 39-38 victory over the Ravens. The health and well-being of Ryan Shazier, recovering from spinal surgery after a frightening hit two weeks ago, is everybody’s first priority. From a football standpoint, Shazier’s absence made the Steelers’ linebacking corps look slow and helpless against the run. The Ravens rushed for 152 yards, gaining 5.8 yards per carry. The Patriots could similarly gash the Steelers behind the tandem of Dion Lewis and Rex Burkhead, with help from James White.

[Ryan Shazier joins Steelers’ locker room celebration from hospital bed via FaceTime]

Then again, the Steelers simply could try to outscore the Patriots. Given Carson Wentz’s season-ending injury, lackluster performances from Brady and Russell Wilson, and Antonio Brown’s 200 yards receiving this weekend, Brown may have nudged his way into the MVP conversion. A wide receiver has never claimed the award, but with a big game in a victory, Brown will thrust himself into the forefront.

Steelers-Patriots will decide so much. If the game that preceded it is any indication, nobody can predict how it’s going to go.

>>> Philadelphia Eagles Coach Doug Pederson confirmed Carson Wentz tore his left anterior cruciate ligament and is done for the season. Mark Maske says the Eagles can still be good, but can’t win a Super Bowl with Nick Foles. More alarming, perhaps, is what happens after this season. Wentz was incandescent this season, but it remains to be seen whether he will be 100 percent, or even available, for the start of next season. He’s not guaranteed to ever be the same again, as Bob Ford writes.

>>> The NFL and NFLPA will conduct an investigation into the Texans’ handling of quarterback Tom Savage, who went back into the game Sunday minutes after he was convulsing on the turf after a hit to the head.

Bill O’Brien said he would not have reinserted Savage had he seen the video. That is nonsense, and the NFL shouldn’t let it stand. Between team and independent medical personnel and assistant coaches, somewhere close to 30 people could have seen the video or known Savage was in no shape to play. If O’Brien didn’t know, it’s because he’s set up a system in which he doesn’t want to. That’s unacceptable.

It is also worth noting multiple Texans, including Savage and Deshaun Watson, supported O’Brien.

I appreciate everyone’s thoughts and prayers, I’m doing fine. Even though I cannot speak to media due to the protocol I will say this, nobody cares more about his players than OB. https://t.co/kdEg2n7ih5

— Tom Savage (@TomSavage03) December 11, 2017

& I want OB with me! https://t.co/nQvzmfYFmx

— Deshaun Watson (@deshaunwatson) December 11, 2017

>>> The Packers are still evaluating whether Aaron Rodgers will return Sunday against the Panthers, Tom Silverstein reports. Coach Mike McCarthy said Rodgers believes he can go, but the Packers will put the decision in the hands of doctors following several scans and tests Rodgers underwent Monday. Maybe the final decision hasn’t come, but it would be a shock, and a huge letdown, if Rodgers does not play. He’s been practicing for two weeks and has reportedly looked great. The 7-6 Packers need to win their final three games to have a realistic shot at making the playoffs, but if they can win out, their chances are excellent.

Read more on the NFL:

Roger Goodell still doesn’t believe Colin Kaepernick is being blackballed by NFL

Here’s the Cowboys’ very unlikely path to the playoffs

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