The Baltimore Ravens are still searching for their first win of the season. They hope that comes against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday Night Football. The Steelers are coming off a pyrrhic victory, beating the St. Louis Rams to improve to 2-1, but losing QB Ben Roethlisberger for 4-6 weeks with a knee injury. Every AFC North game is important, and these are two teams who don't get along very well. So who's got the edge in this one? Here's our game preview and prediction.
Line: Baltimore by 3
What's At Stake:
The 1992 Chargers are the only team to make the postseason after starting 0-4, so this as close to a true "must-win" a team can have this early in the season. If the Ravens don't win this one, a postseason appearance is highly unlikely. For the Steelers, they're hoping Mike Vick can play well enough to let Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown carry the team to victory. The Steelers don't need Vick to win them games; they just need him to not lose it.
Key To The Game:
Can Justin Forsett get something going on the ground? He's averaged 3.2 yards per carry this season and has yet to find the end zone. The Ravens need him to get going quickly. For the Steelers, Vick will need to manage the game well. He only threw six passes in the last game, and although he'll air it out more frequently, don't expect Vick to sling it around like he did in his Atlanta Falcons days. While read option looks with Bell and Vick could be exciting (and productive), I'm not sure that's Todd Haley's style of play. Speaking of Haley, the Steelers offense struggled when it first hired Haley, but improved tremendously when Roethlisberger started running more no-huddle. Haley's play-calling will be a big factor in the game.
What They're Saying About The Baltimore Ravens:
Breshad Perriman Out With Knee Surgery
Ravens Will Need To Steelers' Limit Running Game To Win
Ravens Catch Break With Roethlisberger Out
What They're Saying About The Pittsburgh Steelers:
Pressure Is On Steelers' Defense
Steelers' Offense Will Have New Look
Le'Veon Bell Ready For Bigger Workload
Prediction: Ravens Win 24-17
The Steelers offense isn't going to be the same without Big Ben. He's one of the best QBs in the NFL and Mike Vick just isn't as talented as Roethlisberger at this point in his career. The Ravens ground game performs better in this one, although it will still need work. This is a desperate Ravens team and they will play like one.
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