Steelers vs. Patriots: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2017 AFC Championship

If the Pittsburgh Steelers never have to play Tom Brady again, it still won't be soon enough in their minds.

Brady led his New England Patriots to a dominant 36-17 victory over Pittsburgh in Sunday's AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium and clinched his seventh Super Bowl appearance—something 28 teams have yet to accomplish throughout their respective franchise histories—in the process. He also improved his career record against the Steelers to 10-2.

The Patriots will play the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI after the latter destroyed the Green Bay Packers in Sunday's NFC Championship Game, 44-21. It will be New England's ninth Super Bowl appearance, which breaks the former all-time record of eight for the Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos and Steelers, per James Palmer of NFL Network.

Brady completed 32 of his 42 pass attempts for 384 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. The Patriots noted it was the ninth time Brady threw for at least three touchdowns in a postseason game, which tied Joe Montana for the NFL's all-time record. The Patriots also said the signal-caller set a career high for passing yards in a single postseason game.

According to Pro-Football-Reference.com, Brady was 7-2 against the Steelers in the regular season—with 24 touchdowns and three interceptions—and 2-0 in the playoffs coming into Sunday's game. He demonstrated his mastery of Pittsburgh once again by picking apart its zone and consistently finding Chris Hogan and Julian Edelman.

Hogan caught nine passes for 180 yards and two scores, while Edelman tallied eight catches for 118 yards and a touchdown. According to NFL Research, Hogan finished with the most receiving yards in New England playoff history.

The Patriots pointed out the duo made history as well:

Pittsburgh lost its most dangerous weapon in the first half when Le'Veon Bell suffered a groin injury, per Steelers director of communications Burt Lauten. DeAngelo Williams filled in with just 34 yards on 14 carries and didn't force many additional defenders into the box. Antonio Brown failed to pick up the slack, as he finished with 77 receiving yards and zero touchdowns on seven catches.

Ben Roethlisberger posted respectable numbers with 314 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception, but his team was playing from behind for the majority of the game. The Steelers noted he set the team record for playoff game appearances at 20, but he likely won't take much solace in that fact.

Roethlisberger and Brady weren't the only quarterbacks in attendance at Gillette Stadium, as Only In Boston shared:

New England wasted little time setting the tone. Brady found Edelman for 41 yards on the game's second play from scrimmage, which ultimately set up a 31-yard field goal from Stephen Gostkowski.

The Patriots announced Edelman made team history with the long catch:

The two sides traded punts on the next three possessions, although Bell made Steelers history:

The accomplishment didn't result in points, and Brady made Pittsburgh pay with a 16-yard strike to Hogan to open up a two-score lead. The signal-caller had plenty of time to dissect Pittsburgh's zone on the touchdown, and Hogan broke free for the straightforward connection to cap an 11-play, 80-yard drive.

The NFL shared the play:

Things looked dire for the Steelers down 10, especially after Bell suffered his injury. However, Williams carried the load with two receptions and a 15-yard run to set up his eventual five-yard touchdown.

Williams' first catch on the 13-play, 84-yard drive went for six yards and moved Roethlisberger past Dan Marino (4,510) for the sixth-most passing yards in playoffs history, per Dom Rinelli of Steelers PR.

The touchdown had a more direct impact on the game, although Chris Boswell missed the extra point.

New England one-upped the Steelers on the ensuing possession, as Brady tossed a 34-yard flea-flicker to Hogan for another touchdown. Hogan sold the run off the snap, but Mike Petraglia of WEEI pointed to Pittsburgh's lackluster secondary as its primary issue:

The NFL shared footage of Hogan's second touchdown:

Pittsburgh trimmed the halftime lead to 17-9 with a 23-yard Boswell field goal, but it was a problematic scoring drive. Wide receiver Cobi Hamilton dropped a would-be touchdown, and tight end Jesse James was marked down inside the 1-yard line after replay review overturned his score. New England then stuffed Williams on two straight runs before Roethlisberger threw an incompletion to Eli Rogers on 3rd-and-goal at the 5-yard line.

More problematic for the Steelers was the fact New England entered the game 100-1 with a halftime lead at home since 2001, per Pro-Football-Reference.com.

The Patriots continued to control the proceedings to start the second half. After forcing a three-and-out, they drove into field-goal range, where Gostkowski drilled a 47-yarder to make it 20-9. Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin challenged a potential Brady fumble on the drive but did not win.

Another defensive stop put New England in position to effectively bury the Steelers, and it took full advantage. 

Pittsburgh continued to lose Hogan in the secondary, and his 39-yard reception moved the Patriots into the red zone. LeGarrette Blount took it from there, steamrolling his way to an 18-yard run and then punching it in from the 1-yard line.

The NFL highlighted his physicality:

New England extended its commanding grip on the game when Rob Ninkovich recovered Rogers' fumble on the first play of the ensuing possession. Brady parlayed the turnover into a 10-yard touchdown pass to Edelman, earning the admiration of Scout's James Grega Jr.:

"

Tom Brady can make any wide receiver in the NFL look like a damn pro bowler. Dude is the 

— James Grega Jr. (@JGrega11) January 23, 2017"

The Steelers appeared to trim the deficit when Hamilton caught a touchdown on 3rd-and-goal from the 2-yard line early in the fourth quarter, but he was flagged for illegal touching. New England stopped them on 4th-and-goal on the ensuing play and took over with a commanding 33-9 lead and all of the momentum.

Things got worse for the Steelers on their next possession, as Roethlisberger threw an interception right to Eric Rowe on the first play of the drive. New England marched 24 yards over the ensuing three minutes and 50 seconds, and a 24-yard Gostkowski field goal all but iced the game, giving the Pats a 36-9 advantage.

Roethlisberger made the final score somewhat more respectable with a 30-yard touchdown pass to Hamilton and a two-point conversion to Williams, but it was far too little, too late.

Postgame Reaction

Edelman was asked about Brady's record-setting day and said, per Mark Daniels of the Providence Journal, "He deserves it. He's the goat."

Brady said, per Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald: "It was a good day. We're going to the Super Bowl, man. S--t."

Brady also looked ahead to the matchup with the Falcons, per Knox Bardeen of CBS Sports Radio: "We're going to have to play damned good to beat those guys."

Roethlisberger commented on the loss, per the Steelers: "Only one team is gonna finish the season the way they want to & it's not us this year. I told the guys afterwards, I'm proud of them."

Jeremy Fowler of ESPN noted "Tomlin thought 'style of play' was most disappointing about loss. Team didn’t dictate pace or impose will."

What's Next?

While the Steelers turn their attention toward an offseason where improving their secondary could take priority after Sunday's game, the Patriots will begin preparations for Super Bowl LI in Houston on Feb. 5.

New England and Atlanta did not play in the regular season, so there isn't a direct head-to-head showdown to evaluate.

From an experience standpoint, the Falcons haven't been to the Super Bowl since the 1999 season. Brady and the Patriots are seasoned veterans when it comes to fighting for the Lombardi Trophy, but Matt Ryan will make his first appearance on such a stage. 

Regardless of Super Bowl experience, it will be difficult to beat the Patriots if they play like they did Sunday against Pittsburgh.