Patriots hold off Steelers rally, snap 5-game losing streak

Dec. 8 (UPI) -- Bailey Zappe threw three touchdown passes and the New England Patriots held off a late rally to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers and snap a five-game losing streak.

Zappe completed 19 of 28 passes for 240 yards in the 21-18 triumph Thursday at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh. Running back Ezekiel Elliott logged 140 yards from scrimmage and a score on 29 touches.

"They've come in and worked hard every day," Patriots coach Bill Belichick told reporters. "We've tried to improve and correct things that will help us.

"Some of those paid off. Hopefully they will going forward. There are some things we can still do better."

Zappe led an eight-play, 75-yard drive to start the game. Elliott caught an 11-yard touchdown toss for a 7-0 lead. Steelers kicker Chris Boswell then made a 56-yard field goal on the next drive, making the score 7-3.

Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers intercepted Steelers quarterback Mitch Trubisky early in the second quarter. Zappe threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to tight end Hunter Henry two plays later for a 14-3 Patriots lead.

Zappe threw his third touchdown pass less than 7 minutes later, pushing the edge to 18 points, but the Patriots never scored again.

The Steelers answered with an eight-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Trubisky threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Diontae Johnson to end that possession. The Steelers trailed 21-10 at halftime.

Neither team scored in the third quarter. The Steelers then found the end zone on a 1-yard Trubisky run with 11:44 remaining. Trubisky threw to tight end Pat Freiermuth after the score to complete a two-point conversion, cutting the deficit to three points.

Both offenses continued to struggle, but the Patriots defense held up several times in the clutch, denying the Steelers of a fourth-down conversion with about 2 minutes remaining. The Steelers got the ball again with about 15 seconds remaining for the game's final possession.

Trubisky connected with Johnson for a 24-yard gain on the first play of the drive. He then thew an incompletion, which ended the game.

Trubisky completed 22 of 35 passes for 190 yards, one touchdown and an interception. He also ran for 30 yards. The Patriots outgained the Steelers 303 to 264 in total yards. They also went 2 for 2 in the red zone, compared to the Steelers' 1 for 2 scoring rate in the same area.

The Patriots (3-10) will host the Kansas City Chiefs (8-4) at 1 p.m. EST Dec. 17 in Foxborough, Mass. The Steelers (7-6) will play the Indianapolis Colts (7-5) at 4:30 p.m. Dec. 16 in Indianapolis.