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FOXBOROUGH – On a weekend where the past was honored with Bill Parcells and Julian Edelman inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame, Sunday’s game against Pittsburgh was a reminder of just how far removed we are from the good old days.

New England’s defense held the Steelers to just 203 total yards – including only 139 yards passing for Aaron Rodgers – but the offense turned the ball over five times (four fumbles, two by Rhamondre Stevenson) in an ugly and demoralizing 21-14 loss.

“We just have to not give them so many chances with the turnovers, take care of those things. There’s a lot to clean up. A lot of good in there, but unfortunately just not enough to get us to win, to get us to really have any sort of advantage in a football game,” said Mike Vrabel. “Every time I felt like we were going to take the momentum and be able to score and move forward in the game, and the defense did a great job there. Unfortunately it got to be one too many opportunities on their part.”

“We need his ability, but we also need to take care of the football. It’s a long answer to tell you that I’m not really sure 20 minutes after the game what we’re going to do, but we need him because he helped us win the game last week, and it was a different story today,” Vrabel said of Stevenson.

Tied 14-14 with the ball on their own 18-yard line and 12:28 left in the game, the Patriots still had a chance to send the fans home happy.

Six plays into the drive, Drake Maye (28-37, 268 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT) rolled to his right and scrambled for first down on 4th-&-1 inside the Pittsburgh 35. One play later, Maye was strip sacked for the team’s fifth turnover of the day with 7:41 to go.

“Yeah, just saw TreVeyon late and tried to do something stupid,” Maye said. “Really I think it’s just continue playing. Really my capability, feet outside the pocket makes it tough on them. They’re a good front. I thought those guys up front blocked their butts off, but just be decisive, and if I have to take a sack, just take care of the football. That’s the number one thing.”

Rodgers (16-23, 139 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT) proceeded to lead a nine-play drive that ended with a 17-yard touchdown to Calvin Austin III with 2:16 left, putting the Steelers up 21-14.

The Pats quickly moved down to the Pittsburgh 28, but on 4th-&-1 and the clock winding under 30 seconds, Pop Douglas caught a short pass, then inexplicably took a step backwards, getting tackled short of the sticks for a turnover on downs, sealing the deal for the Steelers.

“I wish I would have told those guys, 4th-&-1, just try to catch it and get up field. I wish I would have told them that in the huddle. Those little things go a long way. Yeah, nothing Pop did wrong. Just he was trying to make a play,” Maye said. “I wish I would have – we were expecting some type of blitz look. I think they played some blitz trap deal. Shoot, that’s just the league. You’ve got the ball, tied up, and it cost us, and then we got the ball with the tie to send it to overtime. That’s the NFL. It’s tough, but it’s a great experience.”

This one was ugly from the start.

Four plays into the game after the Patriots won the toss and took the ball, Stevenson fumbled at the Pittsburgh 46. A DPI call on Alex Austin at the one-yard line on 3rd-&-goal 10 plays later allowed Kenneth Gainwell to punch in a short TD for the game’s first points. New England quickly punted – the Patriots had 20 total yards with 31 penalties yards its first two drives – and the Steelers went on a lengthy 12-play march. That drive ended with Rodgers throwing a jump ball TD to DK Metcalf over Carlton Davis III less than two minutes into the second quarter for a 14-0 lead.

The Patriots offense finally woke up and a five-yard touchdown catch by Hunter Henry capped a nine-play, 77-yard drive to make it 14-7. Pittsburgh immediately went three-and-out, but the punt pinned the Pats at their own six with 7:20 left in the half.

What followed was one of the more frustrating sequences in the last few years.

The Patriots converted a 4th-&-1 at their own 15, a 3rd-&-10 for 23 yards and a 3rd-&-5 at the Pittsburgh 30 for seven yards as part of a methodical 17-play drive. But, on 3rd-&-goal from the six, Maye was picked off in the end zone with six seconds left, a back-breaking turnover that kept the Steelers ahead 14-7 heading into halftime.

“Yeah, I had Boutte. I fired in there and I think 97 (Cam Heyward) got a hand on it, and just kind of took it a different route,” Maye explained. “It was a good play by him, but yeah, I think I could have gave him a different ball flight, I think in the back corner of the end zone for a touchdown. Like I said, just one of those things that stings. I was thinking about it all halftime. Just got to move on.”

The third quarter was somehow uglier.

Robert Spillane picked off Rodgers two plays in and brought it back to the Steelers 11. Two snaps later, Stevenson fumbled at the goal line and the Steelers recovered in the end zone for a touchback. Pittsburgh was forced to punt four plays later, but old friend Jabrill Peppers quickly got the ball back for his new team three snaps after that, stripping Antonio Gibson and recovering at the Steelers’ 43.

The defense once again did its job, forcing another quick punt. The ensuing Pats drive started at its own 12 with 8:40 left in the quarter and ended four seconds into the fourth on a 16-yard TD catch for Henry on 4th-&-1, finishing off a 15-play march that tied the game up at 14.

“We don’t need to lose a football game to know that turnovers are very hard to overcome. They erase all the good things that you do. They take away momentum. They take away points, give them field position,” Vrabel added.

“We didn’t need to turn it over as many times as we did to learn a lesson. I think we knew that before. It was very unfortunate.”