When the Steelers have the ball look for them to try to run the ball at the Falcons, who were not effective in dealing with Tiki Barber and Brandon Jacobs a week ago.  Willie Parker will get most of the carries (434 yards rushing), but also look for Najeh Davenport to get some carries.  Look for the Falcons to blitz alot and force Ben Roethlisberger into bad decisions (2 TDs, 7 INT) against a defense that picks off alot of passes (8 INT).  Teams don’t usually pass too well against the Falcons who only allow opponents a 59.6 QB rating.  The Steelers need one of their receivers to step up and make some plays as Hines Ward is the team leader in catches (18) and yards (207).  Those numbers are pathetic for a team leader in the NFL after 5 games.

The Falcons are having a year for the ages running the football and will try to push the Steelers physical defense around and run the ball on them.  The Falcons are averaging 232.0 yards rushing per game and 6.4 yards per carry.  Those numbers are absurd.  Look for Warrick Dunn (511 yards rushing) to get most of the carries, but rookie Jerious Norwood (226 yards, 7.5 ypc) good give him a break at some point.  The Steelers must be aware of Michael Vick at all times.  Vick has 401 yards rushing and he’s averaging 8.7 yards per carry!  The Steelers defense has been stout against the run allowing only 78.4 yards rushing per game and 3.2 yards per carry.  When the Falcons have the football this game will resemble a boxing match, as the Falcons will try to wear down the Steelers defense.  The Falcons passing game is pretty much non-existant.  The Falcons only average 114.0 yards passing per game and only complete 50% of their passes.

This should be a great football game.  If the Steelers can stop the Falcons running game or get an early lead on them, they will win the game.  If the Steelers turn the ball over and the Falcons run the ball well, they will win the game.  So you’ll just have to tune in and see what happens.