The Steelers will face off with division-rival Baltimore for their final matchup of the season with a lot on the line.
While the Steelers have a playoff spot riding on this game the Ravens will have their draft position to think about on their end. This game could also not be more different than the previous meeting between these two teams in October.
Ben Roethlisberger sat out the 23-20 loss and watched on the sidelines as then-kicker Josh Scobee missed the potential game-winning field goal. Michael Vick quarterbacked the Steelers and Le’Veon Bell was still healthy.
On the other side of the ball the Ravens sported a mostly healthy team at that point with Joe Flacco, Justin Forsett and Steve Smith Sr. all playing. While those guys are all on IR the Steelers will still have to worry about linebacker Elvis Dumervil, who has made a habit of being able to get to Ben Roethlisberger.
It’s easy to think of this game as a “trap game” with the injury-ravaged 4-10 Ravens not as difficult of an opponent as the three previous division-leading teams the Steelers have just faced but Ben Roethlisberger said earlier in the week that he has the team focused on getting into the playoffs and getting some revenge against the Ravens in the process.
"“They beat us here so there is a lot of focus on going into this game. They have some different guys who have filled in, but did a great job. They have some high motor guys up front, in the secondary, doing some different looks, mixing things up. It’s not going to be easy trying to identify who is coming, who is not, where is someone lining up. We have a lot of film study to do.” – Ben Roethlisberger"
The Steelers will clinch a playoff spot if they beat the Ravens and the Jets lose to the Patriots. It’s not the only scenario that the Steelers need to clinch a playoff berth, but it’s definitely the most immediate and direct one.
Next: Steelers vs Ravens: Fantasy outlook
Doesn’t matter who is or isn’t playing it’s still the Ravens and it still matters. The game was previously scheduled to be the Sunday Night Football featured game of the week but got flexed out in favor of the Giants and Vikings game.
Here’s all the info you’ll need on how to catch the action:
Date/Time: Sunday, Dec. 27th, 1:00 pm EST
Location: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD
TV: CBS (KDKA 2-Local Pittsburgh), Direct TV NFL Sunday Ticket
Radio: SteelersNationRadio.com, 102.5 WDVE
Live Stream: nfl.com, nflst.directv.com
Announcers: Greg Gumbel, Trent Green, Jamie Erdahl
Here we go Steelers! Here we go!