Ravens at Steelers
THE STORY: The Pittsburgh Steelers have found their stride after a sluggish start to the season, reeling off four consecutive victories to move into sole possession of first place in the AFC North Division. The Steelers will have a chance to take control of the division race and avenge an ugly season-opening loss when they host the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night. It won't be an easy task against Baltimore, which mauled Pittsburgh 35-7 in Week 1 in one of the most lopsided games in the bitter rivalry. The Ravens have struggled in back-to-back games and are tied with the Cincinnati Bengals for second place in the AFC North – one-half game behind the Steelers.
TV: NBC, 8:20 p.m. ET. LINE: Steelers -3, O/U 42
ABOUT THE RAVENS (5-2): Baltimore erased a 21-point second-quarter deficit to overcome visiting Arizona 30-27 last week. Ray Rice rushed for a career-high three touchdowns – all in the second half. The Ravens’ defense allowed only 207 total yards one week after limiting Jacksonville to 205 yards in a 12-7 loss. Joe Flacco threw for 331 yards but he has tossed only one TD pass against four interceptions in the past four games. His QB rating has not surpassed 78.5 in five of the seven games. WR Anquan Boldin had seven catches for 145 yards. Baltimore has allowed an AFC-low 15.7 points per game.
ABOUT THE STEELERS (6-2): Pittsburgh turned in its most impressive performance of the season, shackling Tom Brady in a 25-17 win over the New England Patriots. QB Ben Roethlisberger carved up the Patriots, throwing for 365 yards on 36 of 50 passing as the Steelers held the ball for nearly 39 ½ minutes. Roethlisberger has thrown for 726 yards in the past two games and has 11 scoring passes and only two interceptions during the four-game winning streak. Pittsburgh, which held the high-scoring Patriots to only 213 yards in total offense, is ranked No. 1 in the league with 171.6 passing yards allowed per game.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin needs one victory to become the fourth coach in franchise history with 50 wins.
2. Boldin needs 104 yards to reach 9,000 for his career.
3. Eight of the last meetings between the teams have been decided by seven points or fewer.