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Week 12: Bills vs. Steelers
 at 
Sunday, Nov. 28th
1:00pm ET
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The Bills come back home on a two game winning streak with some good momentum. The cellar dwellars are behind them for now and it's back to facing a division leading foe. The Steelers are battling for a division title and beating them will be a very tough task for Buffalo.
FACTS AND FIGURES
| Matchup: |
Buffalo (2-8) vs. Pittsburgh (7-3) |
| Place: |
Ralph Wilson Stadium |
| TV/Radio: |
Network: CBS; DirecTV: 705; Sirius: 127 |
| Announcers: |
Kevin Harlan and Solomon Wilcots |
| Spread: |
Steelers by 6 |
| Series: |
Steelers lead 11-8 (Steelers 2-1 in playoffs) |
| Streak: |
Steelers Won 3 |
| Last Meeting: |
Steelers 26-3 in Pittsburgh (2007) |
| Steelers Offense: |
Rush (11th); Pass (21st); overall (22nd) |
| Steelers Defense: |
Rush (1st); Pass (22nd); overall (5th) |
| Bills Offense: |
Rush (14th); Pass (23rd); overall (24th) |
| Bills Defense: |
Rush (32nd); Pass (9th); overall (25th) |
INJURY UPDATE
The Bills will be without Shawne Merriman again because of his Achilles injury. They will also likely not have Eric Wood this week because of an ankle strain. C.J. Spiller and Spencer Johnson are also questionable at best with hamstring injuries. Terrence McGee left Wednesday's practice with a knee injury and may not be available.
The Steelers are pretty healthy. Star safety Troy Polamalu has missed practice time this week with an ankle injury. WR Antonio Brown has a knee injury. DE Aaron Smith has a tricep injury and TE Matt Spaeth has a concussion. All three players will likely be gametime decisions.
Check out our  Bills Daily Injury Page throughout the week for the latest updates on the injured players.
KEY MATCHUPS
LB Paul Posluszny vs. RB Rashard Mendenhall:
Poz has really come on as of late and is 8th in the league in tackles. He will be very busy this week against one of the top runners in the game in Mendenhall. He is closing in on a 1,000 yard season.
LT Demetrius Bell vs. OLB James Harrison:
Bell has not been heard from in recent weeks which means he is doing his job. He's developing into a decent tackle but will need some help this week against Harrison who is third in the league with 9 sacks.
RT Mansfield Wrotto vs. OLB LaMarr Woodley:
Wrotto has played well in spots since taking over the starting right tackle spot. He will need to play over his head against Woodley who is a nice bookend along with Harrison. He has 6½ sacks on the season.
WR Stevie Johnson vs. CB Ike Taylor:
Johnson is on fire and is worthy of Pro Bowl consideration in what has become a huge breakout season for the third year pro. Taylor is a cagey veteran who will battle him hard all game long. Johnson will need to make a lot of plays for the Bills to have a chance this week.
DB Drayton Florence vs. WR Hines Ward:
Florence is coming off a career game and is really solid in coverage. He will lineup on most plays opposite Ward who is a solid veteran who is not having a statistically big year but is very dangerous.
S Donte Whitner vs. TE Heath Miller:
The Bills continue to struggle with tight ends but have been better in recent weeks thanks to the solid play of Whitner. The former first round pick has really picked up his game in the last month and will look to shut down the veteran Miller.
GAME PLAN
When The Bills Have The Ball: This could be a week that the Bills totally abandon the running game and take to the air early and often if the weather cooperates. The Steelers have the top ranked run defense and it will be very hard to get the ground game going especially if they fall behind early.
When The Steelers Have The Ball: They have always been known as a smash mouth football team and they won't change against the league's worst run defense. Look for the Steelers to run all day long and try to wear out the Bills undersized front seven.
BILLS DAILY PREDICTION
The Bills have played very well recently and has taken three division leaders to the wire since their bye week. The Steelers need to be careful that this isn't a trap game for them with a monumental battle against Baltimore next week. The Ralph will be rocking but unfortunately it will be half filled with terrible towel waving Steeler fans. The Bills are due to get blown out and I think it happens this week:
Steelers 34, Bills 13
Season Prediction Record: (7-3)
Season Record Against The Spread: (5-5)
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