Sunday Night Football Week 17: TV Schedule, Live Stream for Bengals vs. Steelers

What more can you ask for than having perhaps the most competitive division in the NFL decided in the last regular-season game?

Few were surprised when NBC flexed the AFC North clash between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals into the Sunday night slot. It's a winner-take-all battle between two teams that really don't like each other.

When they first met, Pittsburgh exploded in the fourth quarter, turning a 21-17 deficit into a 42-21 victory. Ben Roethlisberger torched the Bengals secondary for 350 yards and three touchdowns, while Le'Veon Bell carved open the defense to the tune of 185 yards and two TDs on the ground.

Although there is no shortage of great games today, this one might be the most juicy.

When: Sunday at 8:30 p.m. ET

Where: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh

Watch: NBC

Live Stream: NBC Sports Live Extra

The Bengals are coming off a big victory over the Denver Broncos on Monday night.

Cincinnati intercepted Peyton Manning four times, and more importantly, Andy Dalton didn't completely unravel despite an early interception. He finished 17-of-26 for 146 yards, two touchdowns and the pick-six, which are respectable numbers considering the quality of the Denver secondary and the rough weather conditions in Cincy on Monday.

It represented progress considering how poorly Dalton performed in his previous four prime-time games, via Fox Sports NFL:

Still, you can't help but wonder if Dalton will revert back to his old self tonight.

The 27-year-old has struggled in his career against Pittsburgh, going 2-5. In those seven games, Dalton's averaged 214.3 yards, 1.3 touchdowns and 0.7 interceptions on 56 percent passing, slightly down from his career averages of 230.4 yards, 1.5 TDs and one INT on 61.4 percent passing.

By now, everybody knows what to expect from the veteran QB. He is what he is, and everybody should give up hope that he's going to become some stud, All-Pro thrower.

Sports Illustrated's Doug Farrar believes Dalton is firmly in the middle of the pack in terms of the current QB crop:

The Steelers will want to make Dalton win the game, and in order to do that, they'll have to slow down Jeremy Hill.

Hill ran for 46 yards on eight carries in the defeat to Pittsburgh. Since then, he went for 148 yards against the Cleveland Browns and then 147 against the Broncos.

The rookie running back was spectacular on Monday, and his quick 85-yard touchdown run in the first quarter helped the Bengals settle down following Aqib Talib's pick-six.

According to NFL on ESPN, Hill is the first rookie in nearly a decade to have four 140-plus-yard rushing games in one season:

Pittsburgh's been a tough team to run on this year. The Steelers are sixth in rushing yards allowed per game (99.3). Football Outsiders isn't quite so bullish on the unit, ranking it 17th in run defense DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average).

The Bengals will have their own problems in terms of rush defense. Cincinnati ranks 29th against the run, according to Football Outsiders, and has allowed an average of 122.1 yards on the ground.

You wonder how much success C.J. Anderson might have had if Peyton Manning hadn't been so turnover-prone and the Broncos hadn't been playing from behind for so long. Although Anderson might have rushed for only 83 yards, he averaged a healthy 4.6 yards per carry.

Bell's already bludgeoned the Bengals defense once. There's no reason he can't do it again.

Cincinnati also has the little matter of stifling Roethlisberger, who's thrown 21 touchdowns to three interceptions at Heinz Field this season. The Bengals pass defense has been very good all season, with Dre Kirkpatrick in particular stepping up in a big way:

This game will be a great litmus test for the Bengals.

They've made the playoffs in each of the last three seasons, falling in the Wild Card Round every time. Going into Pittsburgh in the last game of the season and winning the division could show that Cincinnati is ready to put all of that postseason disappointment in the past.