It's more of the same as Patriots roll over Steelers in season opener

FOXBOROUGH, MASS. – The New England Patriots trolled the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday and then blew them out Sunday.

A day after the acquiring former Steelers malcontent Antonio Brown, the defending Super Bowl champions showed they might not even need him, getting 341 yards and three touchdown passes from 42-year-old Tom Brady to beat Pittsburgh 33-3.

Phillip Dorsett caught two touchdown passes, including a 58-yard score, and Josh Gordon — another receiver who wore out his welcome elsewhere — caught one TD pass. On the night New England unveiled its sixth NFL championship banner, Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman caught six passes for 83 yards and also completed a throw to help the Patriots begin their title defense.

No one has won back-to-back NFL titles since Brady, coach Bill Belichick and New England did it in 2003 and '04.

"We made a lot of plays offensively," Belichick said. "There's still, I think, a lot of room for improvement across the board."

Facing the last team to beat them, back in Week 15 last year, the Patriots opened a 20-0 lead before Pittsburgh kicked a field goal on fourth-and-goal from the 1 with 10:17 left in the third quarter. Brady responded with a 58-yard touchdown pass to Dorsett and a 27-3 lead.

Dorsett had four catches for 95 yards and the first multi-score game of his career. He will be moving down the depth chart Monday when the Patriots are expected to make Brown's signing official.

Asked about Brown during his postgame news conference, Belichick didn't even allow a reporter to finish his question. "Next," he said.

The move couldn't be welcome in Pittsburgh. Unable to get Brown to behave, the Steelers refused to trade the disgruntled diva to Oakland, only to see him wind up with the team that has reached the AFC Championship Game eight years in a row.

"Whatever," Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said.

Said coach Mike Tomlin, "I'm not specifically worried about anything relative to Antonio Brown."

Roethlisberger completed 27 of 47 passes for 277 yards and an interception, though 116 of the yards came in the fourth quarter. The offense showed the effects of losing two of its biggest playmakers: Brown and running back Le'Veon Bell, a two-time All-Pro who sat out all of 2018 to avoid a franchise tag.