Patriots vs. Steelers: 5 Halftime Adjustments New England Must Make

Both teams come into the game with five wins and are looking to add to their win total. In the best matchup of the week, look for a great QB duel between Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger. It will be interesting to see who wins the crucial battle between the Steelers defense and the Patriots offense. 

The Steelers had an excellent half against the strong Patriots. The game is not out of reach and it will be interesting to see if Tom Brady can lead a comeback.

Here are five things New England must do in the second half against Pittsburgh:

1) Stop Heath Miller

Early in the game Heath Miller has been torching the Patriots secondary and linebackers. The Patriots need to change their coverages and consider double-teaming the talented TE. 

The Patriots need to find a way to limit the touches for Miller and make Big Ben find his other targets.

2) Sustain Long Drives

The Patriots need to do their best to keep the ball in Tom Brady's hands. The offense needs to help out the defense by keeping the ball away from the Steelers powerful offense. 

Brady needs to play keep away by hitting Welker and the talented tight ends on short routes. Long drives will keep the ball with the strong Patriots offense.

3) Someone Other than Patrick Chung Make a Play

It seems Patrick Chung has been all over the field for the Patriots. While he is playing well, it is not a good sign if your safety is having to make a lot of tackles.

The Patriots LBs need to step it up and allow the Patriots secondary to focus on the dangerous Steelers WRs.

4) Force Turnovers

The Patriots defense needs to help out the offense by forcing turnovers in the second half. The Patriots special teams could get involved to give the offense a short field to work with.

The defense needs to get pressure on Ben Roethlisberger and force him to make a bad decision or force a fumble.

5) Protect Tom Brady

Tom Brady has not looked comfortable in the pocket against the Steelers defense in the first half. The Steelers have been able to get pressure on Brady and have caused him to struggle.

The Patriots need to keep a RB or TE in to block to help Brady get time to find his targets.