Tennessee @ Pittsburgh preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 11, 2012 ) Pittsburgh 23, Tennessee 26

The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off a rare miss after failing to make the playoffs last season - a stunning blow for a franchise that has won a record six Super Bowl championships. Pittsburgh will look to bounce back from a .500 season when it hosts the Tennessee Titans on Sunday in the season opener. The Titans are trying to wash away a dismal 6-10 season and face a daunting first step against a team that has won 10 straight home openers - the longest streak in the NFL.

Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has taken the Steelers to three Super Bowls - winning two - in his nine seasons, but he missed three games to injury in 2012 and starts the year with questions in the receiving corps and running game. Titans counterpart Jake Locker sat out five games a year ago and has yet to prove he is the answer after being drafted No. 8 overall in 2011. Both teams have major questions on defense - the Steelers allowed nearly 100 points more last season than in 2011 and Tennessee was shredded for an NFL-worst 471 points.

TV: 1 p.m. ET, CBS. LINE: Steelers -7. O/U 42

ABOUT THE TITANS (2012: 6-10, third AFC South): Locker came out of college with questions about his accuracy and decision-making and has done little to quell those concerns with a career completion percentage of 55.5. Tennessee overhauled its offensive line and could use more consistency from running back Chris Johnson, who piled up 1,243 yards on the ground but was held to 56 yards or fewer eight times. The more pressing issue is on the other side of the ball, where defensive coordinator Gregg Williams takes charge following a one-year suspension for his role in New Orleans' bounty-gate scandal.

ABOUT THE STEELERS: (2012: 8-8, third AFC North): Roethlisberger must open the season without his two top receiving targets in free-agent departure Mike Wallace and injured tight end Heath Miller. Additionally, rookie running back Le'Veon Bell, the team's second-round draft pick, is recovering from a foot injury, leaving Isaac Redman and former Dallas Cowboys castoff Felix Jones to shoulder the load in the backfield. Perennial Pro Bowl safety Troy Polamalu is healthy after missing nine games a year ago and his big-play ability is crucial to a unit that led the league in fewest yards allowed per game (275.8).

EXTRA POINTS

1. Roethlisberger needs 156 passing yards to reach 30,000 for his career.

2. Johnson has six touchdown runs of at least 80 yards, the most in league history.

3. The Steelers have won four of the last six meetings, but host Tennessee prevailed 26-23 last season.

PREDICTION: Steelers 27, Titans 16