Patriots have tons of streaks snapped in loss to Steelers

Nancy Lane | Boston Herald

The New England Patriots are going to have to do a lot of reworking if they want to go anywhere in the playoffs.

After dropping their second consecutive loss yesterday in a 17-10 defeat against the Pittsburgh Steelers, a ton of streaks were snapped, and the Patriots have fallen behind in the AFC playoff standings.

As of now, New England is no longer the No. 2 seed and are a game behind the Houston Texans. Late season woes are lingering on the Patriots, and the chances of securing a first round bye are dwindling.

As a result of the loss to Pittsburgh, New England is on the unfavorable side of some interesting broken streaks and stats:

-For the first time since 2009, the team will not finish 12-4 or better.

-This is the first time since 2002 that the team has lost back-to-back games in December.

-New England finishes below .500 on the road for the first time since 2009. The only team to ever win the Super Bowl with a 3-5 road record or worse was the Green Bay Packers in 2010.

-The Patriots are not mathematically eliminated from the No. 1 seed, but they need a ton of help.

-Penalties were a nightmare for New England in the loss against Pittsburgh. The Patriots committed an uncharacteristic 14 penalties for 106 yards, including five false starts.

Follow Megan on Twitter: @carnahanmegan