PITTSBURGH — It wasn't the pregame talk about New England.
Or the seemingly weekly distractions that piled up one on top of the other, some of them self-created and others the byproduct of circumstances far beyond their control.
The Pittsburgh Steelers spent Monday cleaning out their lockers instead of getting ready for the AFC championship game because they were outplayed and outclassed by Jacksonville in a wild 45-42 loss .
That's it. That's all.
"I don't think (the outside noise) had anything to do with it," guard David DeCastro said. "They just made more plays than us.