The odds are out! The division leaders are underdogs against division rivals, Baltimore Ravens by 2 points. How is this possible? The Raven’s always give the Steelers a tough matchup and the Steelers have not won in Baltimore in their last 5 trips. The Ravens have the 2nd ranked defense in the NFL only trailing the Steelers defense which is ranked #1 is almost every statistical category.
So why are the Steelers underdogs? It appears that the home field advatnage is the only advantage that the Ravens have. Although Joe Flacco, faired well in his last meeting against the Steelers, make no mistake about it, he won’t have the same success this time around. There is a significant amount more of game tape available on Flacco and you can bet Dick Lebeau with have a few tricks up his sleeve to give Flacco fits! Expect an all-star performance by the Steelers D in this one.
What about the Steelers offense? This is the big question mark. We can’t run the ball and we surely won’t be able too against the Ravens. Attempting to run the ball on the Ravens is about as likely as running the ball on the Steelers… it simply won’t happen unless you have Jerome Bettis (or Brandon Jacobs). The Steelers will HAVE to protect Big Ben or he won’t leave this game healthy. The Steelers will have to be successful with hot reads, and short “dump off” passes to both Mewelde Moore and Heath Miller. If your looking for a fantasy pickup this week, take a close look at both these guys. I also expect Hines Ward to have a good game this week (FINALLY!). Has Hines Ward even caught a pass in the last 2 weeks? I don’t expect his disappearance too last. I expect him to have one of his better weeks against the Ravens and Co. The Ravens defense better keep their heads on a swivel. You hear that Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, Bart Scott, Ray Lewis??
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