Rashaerd Mendenhall picked up a touchdown and the Pittsburgh Steelers continued to wear down a suddenly short-handed Green Bay Packers defense, cutting what had been an 18 point lead to 21-17. Ben Roethlisberger remains less than perfect, but the Packers’ offense and defense have each begun to make mistakes as the second half begins.
If you believe in momentum, that’s a momentum-shifter—ever since the Steelers scored at the end of the first half the Packers have been unable to operate at anything approaching maximum efficiency. The Packers’ offense, thanks for the most part to two dropped passes from some of their top receivers, has been unable to stop the Steelers’ forward progress, even as Pittsburgh begins to stay on the ground and attempt to grind the defense down.
The Packers’ defense did a fine job of stopping Ben Roethlisberger in the first half; in the second half the Steelers are daring them to stop Rashard Mendenhall, as well.