Dec 23, 2016 5 min read

PITTSBURGH – The Steelers and Ravens have met four times in the playoffs since the 2001 season, helping fuel a division rivalry as heated as any in the NFL.

Yet, seldom have the two AFC North rivals met this late with so much on the line.

Pittsburgh hosts Baltimore Sunday for the first Christmas Day game in Steelers’ history. And it will mark just the second time that a game played this late in the season between the two will have such importance.

A win by Pittsburgh (9-5) would clinch in the AFC North title for the Steelers and eliminate the Ravens (8-6) from playoff contention. A win by Baltimore would clinch the division title for the Ravens and leave the Steelers needing to win in Week 17 against Cleveland then get some help to reach the playoffs as a wildcard.

A game in this series hasn’t had these kind of stakes this late in the season since 2006, when eventual division-champion Baltimore defeated Pittsburgh, 34-7, dropping the Steelers to 7-8 in Week 16. The Steelers rallied to beat Cincinnati in overtime the following week, but missed the playoffs, thanks to a win by Kansas City over Jacksonville.

The Steelers would like to avoid needing any outside help to earn a playoff spot this year.

“This is what you play for,” said Steelers safety Mike Mitchell. “It’s the AFC North championship game for us. It’s big.

“I would have taken it against the Little Sisters of the Poor. It wouldn’t matter.”

The game is so big, neither side is really too concerned about the rivalry getting out of hand. There’s too much else at stake.

“It doesn’t get any better than this,” said Steelers offensive tackle Marcus Gilbert. “This is for all the marbles, as far as our season. We feel like we still have a lot to prove. We’re still growing, still getting better and we’re still a team on the rise.

“We have special things coming for us, and I’m excited for it.”

To do those special things, the Steelers have to find the solution to beating a team that has won the past four meetings and six of the past seven.

Included in that run is a 21-14 win in Baltimore by the Ravens earlier this season in a game in which the Steelers did nothing on offense for three quarters before scoring two late touchdowns after getting a punt blocked and returned for a touchdown early in the final period.

Ben Roethlisberger was returning to the Steelers lineup just 20 days after having surgery to repair a meniscus injury and now admits he might have rushed things a bit.

“Coming off of a surgery not long before that, you’re never going to feel great,” said Roethlisberger, who led the Steelers to just two first downs in the first three quarters. “But I felt well enough to go play, obviously. (I’ll) never make excuses for a performance.”

He typically hasn’t had to when he’s started at home against Baltimore. The Steelers are 7-2 against the Ravens with Roethlisberger at quarterback, though one of those two was a 30-17 playoff loss in the 2014 season after star running back Le’Veon Bell was injured six days before the game.

Earlier that season, Roethlisberger threw six touchdown passes in a 43-24 rout of the Ravens at Heinz Field. Roethlisberger missed the game against the Ravens at Heinz field last season. Mike Vick started that game, a 23-20 overtime loss.

This time, however, Roethlisberger is healthy and the Steelers also will have Pro Bowl receiver Antonio Brown and Bell ready to go.

They also take a five-game winning streak – matching New England for the longest in the league – into the game.

“Pittsburgh is playing great football,” said Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh. “It’s a great team, all phases, a very well coached (team), obviously, excellent playmakers, tough, hard-nosed team, and we’re looking forward to the challenge.

“We have a lot of respect for them. They have a great head coach and great coordinators, great players, a great organization. We know each other really well, both sides. We respect them, and we look forward to it every time we play them.”

The respect is there, but the dislike still burns deeply as well. And considering that the two teams stand in each other’s way in terms of a playoff berth, well, they won’t be a gift exchange.

“When I got here, it was like, ‘You don’t like Baltimore,'” said Mitchell, who has been with the Steelers since 2014. “It was kind of like growing up in the Cold War. You just don’t like Russia. That’s just how it is.”

The Steelers will wear their all-black color rush uniforms. … Defensive end Stephon Tuitt (knee) is expected to be a game-time decision for the Steelers. … Pittsburgh will be without tight end Ladarius Green, who remains in concussion protocol after leaving last week’s 24-20 win over Cincinnati, and receiver Sammie Coates, who suffered a hamstring injury Thursday at practice. … Baltimore’s top cornerback, Jimmy Smith, is expected to miss the game with an ankle injury. … Bell has been held under 100 total yards in just one game this season, that coming in the previous meeting with the Ravens. … The Ravens enter the game fifth in the NFL in total defense. The Steelers are eighth. They are seventh and ninth, respectively, in points allowed.