FOXBORO – The Steelers have some serious demons when it comes to the Patriots. Maybe the best way to describe it is to bring up a sore subject with New England fans: the Patriots’ record in Miami.

The Steelers are inflicted with the same type of curse.

They just can’t seem to beat the Patriots no matter what they do, losing in every kind of way.

Last year, it was death by the NFL’s catch rules. Did Steelers tight end Jesse James catch the ball just outside the end zone with 34 seconds to play, or didn’t he? Of course, all of Steelers Nation believe he made the catch.

Last year’s rules, however, which have since been changed, guided officials to conclude he didn’t make the catch on the pivotal fourth quarter play.

That was just the most recent way the Men of Steel had the rug pulled out from under them in a Patriots game. The Steelers had led most of the contest until somehow leaving Rob Gronkowski with single coverage in the fourth quarter as Tom Brady went to the big lug repeatedly during their go-ahead drive.

Ben Roethlisberger ultimately cemented the proceedings by throwing a pick in the end zone after feigning a spike to stop the clock, a move none of the Patriots fell for.

But the James non-catch was a back-breaker during the Pats’ 27-24 Week 15 win last year.

“Obviously it was a critical juncture in the game. It was a big play in the game, and looking back on it, obviously that call clearly helped us win the game,” Patriots de facto defensive coordinator Brian Flores said during a conference call Tuesday. “Looking back on it, and having watched it again, that obviously was a critical play in the game and it turned out in our favor, and that’s how games kind of go. One play can change a game and one call can change a game. But again, when two good teams play, it normally comes down to the wire, it normally comes down to four or five plays in total. Thankfully, we made the plays in that game, and hopefully we make them this week.”

When the Steelers and Patriots meet, those four or five plays are usually made by Belichick’s team.

It’s always something or someone who leaves the Steelers in ruins. Usually, the someone is Tom Brady.

Since Mike Tomlin took over as the Steelers coach alone, Brady has gone 7-1 with a 70.8 completion percentage. He’s thrown 23 touchdowns with just one interception.

He’s owned them and their defense. While Steelers defensive coordinator Keith Butler has said his unit is going to play more man-to-man against teams like the Patriots, that wasn’t the case last year. And it still looks like they’re playing a lot of zone this season. Brady is deadly against zone coverages. He certainly was last week against the Dolphins, throwing for 358 yards with three TDs.

So in one sense, the Steelers couldn’t have turned up at a better time. They just might be the perfect cure for the Miami disaster. They haven’t been able to beat the Pats since 2011, with Belichick’s team ripping off five straight since then.

Is it crazy to think the Steelers could lose four in a row? Because they’ve currently lost three consecutive games after a woeful Week 14 performance against the last-place Oakland Raiders.

During a conference call Wednesday, Tomlin was asked if he was anxious to end the streak.

“We don’t even approach it from that perspective. All of the games that have been played are in the books. There’s nothing that we can do about it. It’s nothing that we can do about the three that we lost,” he said. “It’s nothing that we can do about the five or six before that that we won. We are what we are.”

What they are is desperate. And they’re playing their worst nightmare.

Roethlisberger is nursing a rib injury this time around. Starting running back James Conner might not play. There have been years where the Pats have seen Landry Jones start instead of Roethlisberger. Last year, Antonio Brown got hurt early in the game and didn’t return. During a playoff game Le’Veon Bell also got injured early and didn’t return. The breaks never go their way, and if they do, the Patriots still win.

The Steelers haven’t been able to get over the hump. They haven’t found a way to break through.

Said Belichick: “It looks pretty much like it usually looks with Pittsburgh.”

After what happened last week in Miami, that’s a good thing for the Patriots.