AFC North standings: Steelers look to stack wins in Week 14

Pittsburgh Steelers (6-5-1) vs Minnesota Vikings (5-7), Thursday at 8:20 P.M. ET

The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off their biggest victory of the 2021 campaign. It was a close game that came down to the wire but they emerge on top. Defeating the Ravens at home was a huge boost in this must-win contest.

Now they will head on the road to take on the Minnesota Vikings on a short week. The black and gold have to be careful not to get upset after winning a tough game this past weekend. A game on a short week after a tough AFC North game will not help the away squad in this one.

The Vikings are coming off an embarrassing defeat against the Detroit Lions. It was a tough loss and Minnesota is going to give everything they got to prove that was an anomaly. Pittsburgh is the better of these two clubs but the short week could affect the outcome of this one.

The black and gold have the better roster and the Vikings will probably be without one of their top receivers, Adam Thielen. That would be a huge loss for the home club but the injury report will have to be monitored closely as the game gets closer.

Pittsburgh should be able to apply pressure just like last week as they take on one of the poor offensive units upfront. Getting pressure and causing turnovers is going to be important as the Steelers offense looks to continue to show up as they did in the fourth quarter of last week’s contest.

The Steelers playoff hopes are slim but they are better looking after last week’s victory. The AFC North is a close division and a couple of mistakes will be the difference between the top team and the bottom feeder of this group.