Special Preview
Pittsburgh Steelers at Detroit Lions
Steelers: After that loss to Jacksonville, I think everyone panicked and rightfully so because of how poorly Ben Roethlisberger played. That all seems like a distant memory now because they have won their last two games and all seems to be well with them once again. They handed the Kansas City Chiefs their first loss of the season and then, handled their business against the Bengals. When they’re having fun, this is an exciting team to watch and their offense is the best in the league when they decide to stick to what they know and that’s establishing Bell and spreading your receivers out on the perimeter and throwing the deep ball down the football field. It doesn’t matter who is getting the ball and who is on top of the stat sheet. Their defense is also getting the job done and getting off the field in a timely fashion. They’ve played well, I just want to see if it can continue and I say that because there have been times when they play great football and all of a sudden, they hit a bump in the road. They’ll look to win their third game in a row in an inter-conference showdown with the Detroit Lions on Sunday night.
Lions: With Aaron Rodgers now done for the foreseeable future and with that putting a dim hope on the Packers playoff chances, the Lions can finally put themselves in the driver’s seat and win their first division title in franchise history. Just like a few teams, I can never necessarily figure them out because when I think they’re ready to elevate and take that next step, they let me know and take three steps back instead four steps forward. I look at the Atlanta Falcons game, that was one that should’ve been a victory in Detroit’s favor because they did everything right in that game. They intercepted Matt Ryan three times and still fell short on a call that was supposed to be a touchdown, they struggled against the Carolina Panthers a few weeks later and in week six, they lost in New Orleans and gave up 52 points to the Saints and anytime you give up 50 plus, something definitely isn’t right. If they can just show some consistency and better effort on defense, this is a team that can really control the NFC North and everything is there for them to do so. They have the quarterback, they have the offense and when the defense plays well, this is a good team and I was raving about them at the beginning of the year. They’re off the bye week and will be featured in a primetime game against a streaking Steelers team.
Steelers Player To Watch: Juju Smith-Schuster– He’s a guy that fell into the Steelers lap basically when he was drafted this spring by the black and yellow and I really like the way he’s been used. He’s a playmaker and Ben trusts that he’ll make the catch. That says a lot when a veteran quarterback has faith in a rookie like that.
Lions Player To Watch: Darius Slay– I really don’t think people know much about him. He’s their best cover corner and you can always find him wherever the opponents number one receiver is. He’ll be tested in this one with the best at his position coming to town on Sunday.
Final Analysis: What a difference a few weeks can make. The Steelers locker room is full of positive vibes and winning does good things. During this winning streak, they’ve made it an effort to run the football. Why get away from that? They’ll need Bell to keep getting his touches and getting those yards. He’s their most important player. Two things stand out for the Lions. One, get the running game going. The Steelers defense is coming around and they are playing better, but they still struggle to shut the run down and two, the offensive line better come ready to play because what the Steelers did to the Bengals on Sunday afternoon was something. They made the Bengals one dimensional and dominated Andy Dalton.
Prediction: Steelers 34 Lions 24
