Pittsburgh Steelers: Jacksonville rematch won’t mirror first game

The last time the Steelers hosted Jacksonville, the Steelers were humiliated in a week five match-up. The upcoming divisional match-up will look vastly different.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have long-awaited next Sunday’s game. Just a week over three months after Jacksonville entered Heinz Field and embarrassed the Steelers in a game where Leonard Fournette rushed for 181 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-9 win. As fate would have it, this game would only become a minor speed bump on an otherwise successful season, as the Steelers would go 13-3 and secure a first-round bye in the playoffs.

However, the thought of a Jacksonville rematch has remained steady in the mind of the team, especially when Pittsburgh learned there was a good possibility of it happening. Steelers defensive end and former Jaguar Tyson Alualu was one of many players to come out and make their feelings felt, telling The Athletic‘s Mark Kaboly “I can give you the political answer, but … I want to play Jacksonville.”

Among the many tweets and posts from players, none were more prominent than the comments that emerged from Ben Roethlisberger on his interview with 93.7 The Fan when asked who he wanted a shot at in the playoffs:

"“Anybody is gonna be a disciplined opponent, but I think just for me personally, I’d love to just prove that five interceptions wasn’t me in that game.”"

These comments made their way down to Jacksonville, and as expected, some players offered their opinions via Roethlisberger’s statement. Cornerback Jalen Ramsey took a more subtle approach by essentially saying he would feel the same way. A.J. Bouye took a different approach.

It’s clear both teams aren’t exactly fuzzy in the heart for each other, and are ready to emerge victorious come Sunday afternoon for different reasons. Jacksonville is ready to prove they belong in the conversation with the likes of Pittsburgh and New England, while the Steelers are out to show their week five performance was a fluke.

While a win cannot be guaranteed, one thing is for certain: This isn’t the same Pittsburgh Steelers team. Not the same team who allowed Blake Bortles to defeat them despite completing a mere eight passes. Not the same team who allowed each runner to average at least five yards per carry.

More from NFL Spin Zone

• Dallas Cowboys made the trade everyone else should have made
• Pittsburgh Steelers rookie sleeper everyone should be talking about
• Anthony Richardson putting jaw-dropping talent on display immediately
• Denver Broncos’ stud wide receiver might be out for a while
• Washington Commanders: Three takeaways from win over Ravens

After arguably his worst outing ever as a quarterback with five interceptions against the Jaguars, Roethlisberger has improved his play and has returned to his vintage gun-slinging ways. Ben has only thrown multiple interceptions in one game since the meeting with Jacksonville, and has finished his season as a top five quarterback in passing yards, completions, yards per game and touchdowns thrown.

As Roethlisberger has improved, so has the rest of the offense. Le’Veon Bell finished another strong campaign and Antonio Brown secured the 2017 receiving title despite missing the final two games with a calf injury. Despite losing Ryan Shazier, Pittsburgh’s defense has been able to answer when needed, as the team has done a tremendous job of staying relatively healthy through the course of the season.

This isn’t to say the Jaguars are inferior, or even weak. Touting one of the league’s best defenses and best rushing attack, that recipe alone is one made for a long playoff run. However, in their 10-3 win over Buffalo in the wild card round of the playoffs, Jacksonville showed they were extremely beatable by a (sorry Bills Mafia) inferior team.

Only scoring 10 points on a Bills defense that ranks 26th best in the league, the Bills provided a recipe for success the Steelers should be able to follow: Load the box and force Blake Bortles to throw the football. While Jacksonville’s defense displayed another dominating performance against a Tyrod Taylor-led offense, Jacksonville had better come prepared for a rested and powerful offensive attack.

As the respective two and three seeds of their conference, round two of Pittsburgh/Jacksonville should provide one of the better games of the divisional round. The Jaguars roll into Pittsburgh confident, and as they should. They’ve beaten the Steelers once already, and know they are capable of replicating their success.

Next: 2018 NFL Playoffs: Picks, predictions for Divisional Round

However, the difference between the January edition of the Steelers and the October edition can only be compared to a night and day difference. With a high of 21 degrees and blustering winds a staple of Heinz Field, the weather is prime for Pittsburgh to host a frigid football game. Given the circumstances it’s a perfect fit, as revenge is a dish that’s best served cold.