Tyler took up the skill as a way to get more playing time

PITTSBURGH -- On the road in one of the toughest places to play no matter whos at quarterback for the hosts, the New England Patriots never trailed in a 27-16 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.And still, it wasnt nearly good enough for Tom Brady.Not that it ever is.Though New Englands control of the game was only sporadically threatened, what struck Brady the most were the missed opportunities. The two dropped passes on third downs in the first half that cut drives short. The two fumbles that gave the Steelers possession in New England territory. The lack of any downfield passing game to someone not named Rob Gronkowski.Our execution, when it was good we made a lot of good plays, Brady said. I think there were self-inflicted wounds that really hurt us. Its still really good to come in here and get the win.One that left little doubt about where the balance of power lies in the AFC as the season reaches its midway point.New England (6-1) remained perfect since Bradys return from his four-game Deflategate suspension. He improved to 9-2 all-time against Pittsburgh even on a day when he wasnt as sharp as he would have liked.Then again, the standards are pretty high. Bradys thrown 26 touchdowns against just three interceptions when facing the Steelers. While Pittsburgh pressured him at times, the Steelers failed to record a sack and twice let the 39-year-old scramble for first downs. Yes, really.I feel like we definitely had some hits on him, Steelers linebacker Arthur Moats said. When youve got Brady back there running around, thats a good sign but weve got to get him on the ground.Or any other important Patriot for that matter. Brady threw for 222 yards with two scores, LeGarrette Blount finished with 127 yards and two touchdowns of his own and Gronkowski added his 68th career touchdown reception to tie Stanley Morgan for the most in club history.Were looking like garbage right now, Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier said. This is terrible right now.Not so much in New England, which responded emphatically whenever the Steelers made a push. Just like always.It was ... good to make plays in the second half when we needed to, Brady said. They certainly made it tough for us.LANDRYS LAUNCHPittsburgh backup quarterback Landry Jones played well at times while filling in for injured Ben Roethlisberger, who wore sweats on the sideline over his surgically repaired left knee and offered what advice he could.While Jones wasnt perfect while completing 27 of 49 passes for 281 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his third career start , he was hardly the only reason the Steelers (4-3) dropped their second straight and fell to 11-10 in games not started by Roethlisberger since 2004.The bigger issue for the Steelers wasnt Jones but an inability to stop the Patriots when it mattered and too many miscues in the red zone. The Steelers crossed the goal line just once, had a touchdown called back due to a penalty and watched normally reliable kicker Chris Boswell miss two field goals.BLOUNTS RETURNBlount received a loud chorus of boos during his first touch in the first quarter, a reminder of the ill will he generated when the Steelers cut him two years ago for insubordination . He had the last laugh, ripping off 74 yards in the second half alone to prevent Pittsburgh from focusing exclusively on Brady.To see him come in, run the ball super hard downhill, its just awesome, Gronkowski said of Blount.INJURIESPatriots: escaped Pittsburgh largely unharmed, good news as they prepare for a visit to Buffalo next week. The Bills beat the Patriots 16-0 on Oct. 2, a game Brady missed while serving his suspension.Steelers: Wide receiver Antonio Brown left briefly in the third quarter with a left quadriceps injury but returned, though he was largely ineffective late on a day he finished with seven receptions for 106 yards.WELCOME BREAKPittsburgh is off next week, a much-needed respite for a team that had five regular contributors unavailable on Sunday due to injury. Its uncertain when Roethlisberger may return, though Pittsburgh is hopeful to have defensive end Cam Heyward (hamstring) and right tackle Marcus Gilbert (ankle) back when it visits Baltimore on Nov. 6.Regardless of what happens during the bye, the Steelers will still have at least a share of first place in the AFC North when they face the Ravens. For now, thats little solace.It you want to look at the records thats nice, wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey said. 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STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- As he walked off the field, Blake Gillikin glanced down at his left hand and shook his head in disgust. Thankfully, his feet hadnt let him down.The Penn State punter needed them to chase down a snap that glanced off his bandaged left thumb and bounced close to his teams goal line. With more than 550 pounds of Indiana defenders bearing down on him, Gillikin scooped up the loose ball, accelerated to the right and booted a neat, unreturnable punt past midfield. Although officially a 22-yard net punt, Gillikins long right leg sent the ball on a 47-yard trajectory, preventing a big loss.The hidden yardage or the hidden parts of the game, a lot of people dont see that, special teams coordinator Charles Huff said.Gillikins impacted those areas all season for the No. 9 Nittany Lions (8-2, 6-1 Big Ten, No. 8 CFP) who will face Rutgers (2-8, 0-7) and the nations busiest punter Michael Cintron on Saturday.Averaging 41 yards per punt, Gillikin has dropped 17 of his 47 punts inside opponents 20-yard lines, forced 15 fair catches and has seven kicks over 50 yards. More importantly, the Nittany Lions have won the field position battle in eight of their 10 games this season and are forcing opponents to drive at least 76 yards on average every time Gillikin punts.You see some of the punts he kicks and youre like, `Wow, defensive tackle Curtis Cothran said. You didnt expect it to go that far but the ball just keeps sailing and keeps sailing.Plays like Gillikins scramble punt helped Penn State wrestle field position back from Indiana and primed a fourth-quarter comeback. Theyre why James Franklin couldnt wait to recruit a vaunted punter. But he had to wait until the NCAA restored the Nittany Lions to 85 scholarships in 2015. The wait included a 2-16 record in games where Penn State lost the field position battle.Meanwhile, Franklin kept his eye on Gillikin, a three-sport athlete who was booting 50- and 60-yard punts in high school playoff games for Westminster High in Atlanta and had a twin brother who was a long snapper.dddddddddddde quickly won the starting job previously shared by Chris Gulla and former Australian-rules footballer Daniel Pasquariello. It didnt take long for Penn State players to notice Gillikins big leg. He usually warms up by lining his toes up on the goal line and blasting high, hanging punts out to the opposite 40.He was an outstanding soccer player, Tyler Gillikin said. And when we started football in high school, his leg was extremely strong. Blakes always been the kicker.Now a long snapper for Northwestern, Tyler took up the skill as a way to get more playing time alongside his twin during their sophomore year of high school. Theyve combined for countless snaps, and misfires, over the years. Their grandfather sent Tyler the video of Blake mishandling the snap against Indiana last week for a laugh, but also for pride.That pretty much is in a nutshell what kind of athlete he is, Tyler said.His situational awareness was evident on arguably Penn States most consequential hidden play so far this season.After a high snap whistled over his head against Ohio State, Gillikin hustled back across his goal line with Buckeyes in pursuit and collapsed on the ball to salvage a safety rather than let Ohio State score a touchdown. It was a 5-point swing in a game Penn State won by 4 to burst into Big Ten championship contention.You have an athlete where when in the game certain things dont always got the way you planned or maybe not exactly what you said is going to happen -- they dont panic in those situations, Huff said. They allow themselves to still be in the moment, still be able to play and what happens is, you take a bad play and you dont let it become a catastrophe.---This story has been corrected to reflect that Rutgers record is 2-8, not 8-2. ' ' '