Gerry Dulac's Two-Minute Drill: AFC Championship game
Share with others:
GAME BALL goes to: RB Rashard Mendenhall
In a game in which the Steelers wanted to start fast and play with the lead, nobody helped them do that better than Mendenhall. After rushing for 99 yards in the first meeting, he had 95 of his game-high 121 yards in the first half, including a 35-yard run to set up a field goal and a 1-yard touchdown run in which he pulled away from LB Bart Scott. In addition, he caught two passes for 32 yards, the latter a 14-yarder to set up a touchdown. "We felt like we could get off tackle and let him run out on their corners because they're not good tacklers," offensive coordinator Bruce Arians said.
THE COUNTDOWN
A quick look at the top performances Sunday from the AFC championship:
1. BIG-PLAY GAY: After going 61 pass attempts without a sack, Jets QB Mark Sanchez was sacked twice in three plays when it was 17-0 -- the latter coming when CB Ike Taylor hit his throwing arm and CB William Gay returned the fumble 19 yards for a touchdown, giving the Steelers what seemed like an insurmountable 24-0 lead in the second quarter. "Ike did a good job to knock the ball out," Gay said. "I didn't want to fall on it. I wanted to score on it and I just walked into the end zone."
2. GOAL-LINE STAND: Leading 24-10, the Steelers halted a 17-play drive by the Jets by stopping them on three plays from the 1 early in the fourth quarter. NT Casey Hampton and DE Brett Keisel made the big play on fourth down, stuffing LaDainian Tomlinson.
3. ANOTHER BROWN MOMENT: With the Steelers expecting an onside kick after a Jets touchdown made it 24-19, Antonio Brown's 27-yard return with no blockers gave the Steelers good field position at their 41-- not to mention a little emotional boost.
4. TONE-SETTER: After being held without a catch by CB Ike Taylor in the first half, WR Santonio Holmes beat his former teammate at the line of scrimmage and started the Jets' comeback with a 45-yard touchdown on the first series of the second quarter.
5. MILLER TIME: TE Heath Miller had just one catch in each half, but the second was the biggest -- a 14-yarder on second-and-9 that gave the Steelers a first down at the Jets' 46 with 2:43 left. Miller finished as the leading receiver with two catches for 38 yards.
First Published January 24, 2011 12:52 am
