Steelers vs. 49ers: Niners Must Use What They Learned in Loss to Ravens

Finally, a Monday Night Football matchup worth looking forward to.

The funny part is that a late-season tilt between the Pittsburgh Steelers and San Francisco 49ers didn't look all that intriguing before the season started. At the time, one had to figure that the Steelers would be gunning for another AFC North crown, and the 49ers would be fighting to stay out of the cellar in the NFC West.

But nope. Both of these teams are in the race, and both have a ton of incentive to win this game. If the Steelers win, they'll be in the driver's seat in their division. If the 49ers win, they'll stay in the running to earn the No. 2 seed in the NFC.

But make no mistake, this is a very tough matchup for the 49ers. They haven't looked very sharp in the last three weeks, and these Steelers look like they have the goods to make another run to the Super Bowl. It doesn't help that injured quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is expected to start, according to a report from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

The 49ers have already received one reality check from an AFC North foe, as they were beaten by the Baltimore Ravens on Thanksgiving night. They held their own pretty well in that game, but the offense never really got on track. You have to credit the Ravens for that, as they held Frank Gore to 39 yards rushing and sacked Alex Smith nine times.

Because it's pretty apparent that the 49ers' defense is not likely to have a bad day, this is how you have to go about beating the 49ers: Stop Gore and harass Smith. The Steelers may be without James Harrison, who will be serving a one-game suspension for destroying Colt McCoy, but they have the goods to succeed where the Ravens succeeded.

It's on the 49ers to make the proper offensive adjustments.

To be sure, the 49ers are still going to try to establish the run with Gore, but we've seen in recent weeks that they are not going to run him into the ground. They want him healthy for the postseason, so giving him upwards of 20 touches against a defense as tough as Pittsburgh's is not in their interest.

As such, the Niners are going to need Smith to win this game for them. That's a lot to ask, but they can definitely make it easy on him by not setting him up for failure.

Against the Steelers, this means getting the ball out of Smith's hands quickly, as the last thing they want is for him to drop back in the pocket only to have Pittsburgh's pass rush come roaring after him. The Niners have to keep the Steelers honest, using screens and quick routes that take no time at all to develop.

Doing so won't result in a massive offensive outburst, but staying patient will be key. The last thing the 49ers want to do is panic and start trying things on offense that they wouldn't otherwise try. This is a Steelers defense that feeds on mistakes.

Whatever offense the 49ers can muster should be good enough against the Steelers. Their passing attack is deadly, but the 49ers should benefit from Big Ben's lack of mobility. His work will have to be done from inside the pocket, and the Niners have enough of a pass rush to get to him.

If the 49ers can keep this game close, they'll be in good shape. It may take something creative to get the job done, but Jim Harbaugh has shown that he's not afraid to test those waters.