Steelers vs. Falcons: Breaking Down Pittsburgh's Game Plan

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Atlanta Falcons both go into their game this Sunday with the understanding that a loss means there is no tomorrow. It is great to have meaningful NFL games at this point in the season, but at the same time, these tight playoff races do nothing for the blood pressure.

Team	Record
Cincinnati Bengals	8-4-1
Pittsburgh Steelers	8-5
Baltimore Ravens	8-5
Cleveland Browns	7-6

The Falcons come into this Sunday’s game as the leaders of the NFC South. But don’t get too excited, as the NFC South has shown itself to be far and away the weakest division in the entire league. It is fascinating to think that the top of a division can be a 5-8 team, but such is the NFL.

Pittsburgh is faced with an interesting dilemma. The Steelers are at sitting at 8-5, which puts them less than a game behind the Cincinnati Bengals for the AFC North lead but in command of a wild-card spot.

We've seen that this year's team gets up to play the good teams, but tends to play down to lesser opponents. Which one is Atlanta? How the Steelers approach this game from a mental standpoint will go a long way toward determining whether or not they can win this game.

When the Steelers Are on Offense 

If you want a good feel for what the Steelers are going to do on Sunday, there are two games to look at.

First is last Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Steelers came out and dominated the Bengals in the fourth quarter with a punishing power-running attack and some very timely deep passing. Here’s a look at some highlights from this huge victory:

Why do I think this can work? Because of the other game to reference.

Last Sunday, the Green Bay Packers went out and pounded the Falcons defensive front with their running backs and then let quarterback Aaron Rodgers go over the top. Atlanta rallied to keep the game close, but the Falcons defense had to answer for what Green Bay wanted to do.

The last thing head coach Mike Tomlin and offensive coordinator Todd Haley want to do is get too cute. Regardless of the defensive struggles Atlanta has had this year, Pittsburgh has to come out with intensity on offense and stick to what has worked all season. This is a sentiment echoed by the team and Dale Lolley of the Observer-Reporter.

Look for the Steelers to come out and run running back Le’Veon Bell right at the Falcons with that Counter OF that worked so well against the Bengals. Once they have softened the Atlanta defense up, then the Steelers can use play action to go over the top with wide receivers Antonio Brown and Martavis Bryant.

There are two other things to keep an eye on as well.

The first is that the Steelers offensive line has had a tendency to give up pressures and sacks this year. However, Atlanta struggles mightily to sack the quarterback. It will be interesting to see which side of this wins out.

Frank Victores/Associated Press

The other is the matchup of Brown and cornerback Desmond Trufant will be one to watch. Both are near the top of their respective positions. The battle between these two will be fun to watch. However, because of Trufant’s presence, I expect the rookie Bryant as well as Bell to have huge impacts in the passing game.

When the Steelers Are on Defense

Before any mention of a game plan for the Steelers, there is one important detail that must be mentioned. And it is right here, courtesy of D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

"

#Falcons coach Mike Smith said Julio Jones and safety William Moore will play if they are ready by Sunday. They don't need to practice.

— D. Orlando Ledbetter (@DOrlandoAJC) December 10, 2014"

The health of Atlanta wide receiver Julio Jones will dictate a great deal as far as what the Steelers can and will do on defense. At this point, the Steelers must prepare for the Falcons as if Jones is going to be out there. And this is bad—like a Justin Bieber Pandora station level of bad.

Marc Serota/Associated Press

How will the Falcons deal with a healthy Jones? At this point, it is hard to say. The cupboard is pretty bare as far as cornerback talent. The Steelers don’t have a corner who can come close to matching up physically with Jones. If veteran Ike Taylor cannot go due to injury, the cornerback depth chart will consist of William Gay (5’10”), Brice McCain (5’9”) and Antwon Blake (5’9”).

Because Atlanta has the physical advantage, the Steelers will need to use scheme to counter it. That means getting up and hitting Jones at the line of scrimmage, dropping linebackers into coverage to create traffic over the middle and creating enough clutter that quarterback Matt Ryan can’t key on Jones.

The fact is the Steelers are going to give up plenty of yards and points. The key will be how they get them. If Atlanta wants to line up and pound the football with running back Steven Jackson, that’s something the Steelers can live with.

However, they must eliminate the splash plays that flip the field and snatch away momentum. Smart football up front to eliminate big runs and sound tackling in the secondary could go a long way toward winning this game.

The matchup to watch on this side of the football is between the Pittsburgh pass-rushers and the Falcons offensive line. If Pittsburgh can get a little momentum getting after Ryan, they have the talent to really put the heat on a struggling offensive line. This is especially good if the Steelers can get a lead, because when they can dictate on defense, this group is very hard to deal with.

Prediction

This game is a Steelers win. Plain and simple, they need this more. It is going to take a balanced offensive attack and an opportunistic defense to make it happen, but with only three games left in the season, it is going to happen. Pittsburgh is too physical on offense, and while this game could come down to the wire, the Steelers are the more talented team.

Steelers 35, Falcons 24

All stats and player data courtesy of NFL.com.