Tight end Hunter Henry scored two touchdowns as the New England Patriots ended a five-game losing streak with victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Patriots raced into a 21-3 lead in the second quarter with Ezekiel Elliott scoring a touchdown before Henry’s double for the visitors.
The Steelers rallied with 15 unanswered points but ran out of steam as they lost 21-18.
“It feels good,” Henry said.
“We started fast, put some points on the board and played from ahead, which is what we’ve been wanting to do. It’s been a long year, it’s been a grind. But winning always feels good, and is always fun.”
Although they are rooted to the bottom of the AFC East behind the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, and New York Jets, the Patriots improve to 3-10 on the season.
While Pittsburgh’s Mitch Trubisky ran for one touchdown and completed one pass for another, New England quarterback Bailey Zappe completed 240 passing yards with three touchdowns and one interception.
The Steelers’ chances of making the playoffs are severely damaged by their second straight loss, which drops them to third place in the AFC North with a 7-6 record.
Mike Tomlin, the coach of Pittsburgh, expressed his disappointment.
“We fought in the second half but came up short… this stings but we’ll be back.”
