Steelers Want Revenge When They Meet Jaguars Sunday

The NFL Divisional Playoffs continue on Sunday when the Jacksonville Jaguars visit the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field for a 1:05 p.m. kickoff. Odds makers currently have Pittsburgh as 7-point chalk, while the over/under point total is sitting on 41.

Pittsburgh enjoyed a bye last week that gave All-Pro wide receiver Antonio Brown another week to rest his calf muscle. The Steelers are looking to atone for one of their worst outings of the season, and one of Ben Roethlisberger’s worst ever outings, when they host the Jaguars on Sunday.

In Week 5, the Jaguars visited Heinz Field and walked away with a 30-9 win over the Steelers. Since that game, Big Ben has led his team to 10 wins in the last 11 games, but will have in the back of his mind the five interceptions he threw in October.

Following the loss the Steelers won eight straight before losing to the New England Patriots. Jacksonville reached this point after defeating Buffalo 10-3 last weekend in the wildcard round. Jalen Ramsey clinched the victory for the Jaguars with an interception and picked off Big Ben during Week 5.

However, there is a big question mark about the Jacksonville offense. Quarterback Blake Bortles has played inconsistently throwing five interceptions over the final two games of the regular season and throwing for just 87 yards against Buffalo last week. Bortles did have 88 yards rushing last week, but will not likely have that against the Steelers defense.

The Jaguars are likely going to give the ball to rookie running back Leonard Fournette as much as possible since he ran for 181 yards against the Steelers in Week 5 that included a 90-yard touchdown run.

Defensively, the Jaguars had 55 sacks which were second to just the Steelers, while they were No. 2 in points allowed at 16.8 per game.

Roethlisberger threw for 18 touchdowns and 5 interceptions over his final seven games of the season. Le’Veon Bell rushed for 1,291 yards on the season and caught 85 passes out of the backfield.

However, the biggest news is Antonio Brown fully practiced on Wednesday the same day he was named AFC Offensive Player of the Year. He caught 101 passes and accumulated 1,533 yards receiving on the season with 157 yards against the Jaguars.

Defensively, the Steelers led the NFL in sacks with 56, but two players Artie Burns and Stephon Tuitt were hurt in practice Wednesday.

Prediction: Steelers 28-17