AFC Championship Game 2017: Winner, Score Predictions for Steelers vs. Patriots

Strangely, the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers have not faced each other in the postseason since 2004, which was Ben Roethlisberger's rookie year.

Between 2005 and 2015, the Patriots went to the postseason every year but one, while the Steelers have been to the playoffs seven times. Combined, they made the Super Bowl six times (winning three), yet they never crossed paths.

That drought changes Sunday, when the Steelers and Patriots face off in the AFC Championship Game.

Let's take a look at the lines of scrimmage, where many games are won or lost, and then provide picks for the winner and score.

New England Patriots Offensive Line vs. Steelers' Pass-Rushers

You wouldn't want to meet Steelers linebacker James Harrison in a dark alley, or any alley, or anywhere.

If that isn't the most intimidating athlete in sports, I don't know who is.

Harrison and the rest of the Steelers pass rush have been fantastic since midseason. Danny Kelly of The Ringer wrote about it on Tuesday:

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From Week 9 to their finale against the Browns in Week 17, Pittsburgh racked up an NFL-best 30 sacks, including an eight-sack performance against the Browns in Week 11. The return of Dupree, who had 4.5 sacks in the last four regular-season games, certainly helped, but the biggest change over the back half of the year was that they blitzed on 43 percent of their defensive snaps (third-most in the NFL).

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Pittsburgh also sacked Miami Dolphins quarterback Matt Moore five times in the Wild Card Round. In the divisional round against the Kansas City Chiefs and quarterback Alex Smith, they only sacked the QB once, but they hit Smith five times and Harrison forced a holding penalty against Chiefs offensive tackle Eric Fisher on a key two-point conversion try late that cost Kansas City the game.

The Steelers defense isn't the old Steel Curtain, but it is playing well.

That means the Patriots offensive line, specifically bookends Nate Solder and Marcus Cannon, have a tall task ahead of them Sunday.

However, they may be up to it. The Patriots had the sixth-best adjusted sack rate in the NFL this year (just 4.7 percent), per Football Outsiders. Pro Football Focus also ranked Solder and Cannon 11th and 17th in pass blocking this season.

It's simple: If they keep Tom Brady upright, that'd go a long way toward the Pats having a big offensive day.

If not, the Pats offense can stall, giving the Steelers more possessions and chances to dictate the game's pace with 30-plus Le'Veon Bell rushes, as they did against Kansas City.

Steelers Offensive Run Blocking vs. Patriots Run Defense

Sports radio host Adam Kaufman put it best on Monday:

But to give you more of an idea of this matchup, essentially an unstoppable force meeting an unmovable object, here are two more facts, courtesy of Bleacher Report and Evan Silva of Rotoworld:

Silva's tweet was from before the Patriots-Texans game Saturday, but the stat still stands.

Something has to give on Sunday, right? Or will the two sides produce a stalemate?

Bell rushed for only 81 yards on 21 carries when the teams played on October 23, which resulted in a 27-16 Patriots win. But he's been on fire since then and is a tough matchup for any team.

That being said, Bell has to watch out for one player in particular Sunday: Patriots defensive tackle Alan Branch.

The 10th-year pro is a block of granite in the middle of the line, as highlighted by Billy Moy of Pro Football Focus:

Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, in an article praising Branch, wrote that "including [the] postseason, no individual has rushed for 90 or more yards against the Patriots in their past 24 games. The last was Denver’s C.J. Anderson with 113 yards in Week 12 last season."

Bell and the Steelers have as good a chance as any team to break that 90-yard marker, especially considering that the 24-year-old hasn't rushed for under 90 yards since November 13, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

Pick: Patriots 31, Steelers 24

With all due respect to Mr. Harrison, the expectation here is that the Patriots keep Brady on his feet and ward off the Steelers pass rush. That will lead to numerous early scoring opportunities for New England and fewer rushing opportunities for Bell, who is the engine that runs the Steelers offense.

The Pats will jump out to an early lead and hold on for the win.