I picture Borat saying “whaaaaaaat?” when reading the headline of this article.

Yes: this article is dedicated to the Steelers special teams unit and it’s a film room feature.

And yes, I realize Borat may be a dated reference for some readers, but bear with me: Pittsburgh’s LS Greg Warren has been with the Steelers longer than the Borat movie.

Greg caught some tough love as part of a blocked field goal attempt against the Philadelphia Eagles, but gains a lot of warmth from Steelers Nation for coming up with the football in last Sunday’s game against the Patriots. Many in attendance at Heinz Field, including some New England fans, were all in shock when the long snapper made a fumble recovery on this play.

Watch as number 60 takes a pretty darn good push after snapping the ball, then recovers and hauls downfield to make the play.

Now, we’re all giggly because long snappers, as well as other specialists, don’t usually receive a lot of love; but in all seriousness, Greg Warren has been as consistent as any football player for over a decade now, having joined the Steelers in 2005.

I’d also like to commend P Jordan Berry for blasting this ball 43 yards, and LB Steven Johnson for stripping the ball. This was an all-out special teams effort across the board, with the gunners (specifically Darrius Heyward-Bey) sealing the outside lanes and forcing Patriot returner Julian Edelman to the inside, where Johnson makes the play.

In fact, Johnson almost gets too deep but also recovers to force the fumble, which is then recovered by Warren.

It wasn’t the only great punt play of the afternoon, as Jordan Berry defied Bill Belichick’s stubborness to decline a penalty on fourth down, forcing a do-over for the Pittsburgh punter.

On the previous nullified punt, Berry punted 50 yards, which would’ve set New England’s offense to start at their own 16 yard line. The penalty moved the Steelers back, and Berry would have to cover 5 more yards.

And cover he did.

Berry nails this punt, sending it out-of-bounds at… the New England 16.

Belichick’s reluctance to accept the penalty ended with the same result, thanks to a great punt by Berry. Unfortunately, once again, the Steelers couldn’t capitalize on the good fortune by the special teams unit, as the Patriots drive the length of the field for their first touchdown on the ensuing drive. This would also be true of when the Steelers received the ball off of the turnover by Julian Edelman’s punt return, reference in the first clip.

The turnover gave the Steelers the ball in New England territory, on the Patriots 43. The Steelers went 3-and-out, faced with a 4th and 3, down 11, with 9:05 remaining in the game. Mike Tomlin decided that instead of going for it on fourth down, that he would let Chris Boswell attempt a career long 54-yard field goal, in a stadium notorious for ending kicker’s careers.

No surprise to anyone, Boswell missed the attempt, however, it wasn’t that miss that disappointed me.

After a questionable penalty negated a would-be tying touchdown in the second quarter, Boswell came out to attempt his first field goal try in the game. Boswell, who is typically consistent, had the least attempts of any kicker in the NFL at that point; and the rust showed, as he hooks this kick wide right, leaving the Steelers with zero points after a solid, promising drive.

That miss may have been the biggest turning point in the game, as it may have closed the scoring gap to where Tomlin doesn’t trot Chris out for a 54-yard attempt later in the game, as the Steelers would’ve been 3 points closer, within 8, of tying New England. Likewise, a made field goal may have changed game plans on both sides of the ball, which could’ve favored the Steelers defense as well, with New England playing less of a ground-and-pound possession game, as they would not have been able to rest on a two possession differential.

All joking aside, we can now see how serious the third phase of football is to winning games. Just as the Steelers could’ve benefited more from their special teams play at times, the Patriots could’ve lost by making a critical error on Edelman’s fumble. Regardless, I’m still impressed with how the Steelers have handled special teams, with many injuries on offense and defense limiting the usual contributors from playing in those situations, or calling upon others to add to their duties. It shows that there is a team-first mentality out there, no matter when and where the individual is playing on the field.