Pittsburgh @ Atlanta preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 27, 2011 ) Atlanta 16, Pittsburgh 34

Division titles remain very attainable goals for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Atlanta Falcons as the playoff hopefuls prepare to tangle Sunday in the Georgia Dome. The Steelers have won five of seven to get within a half-game of AFC North leader Cincinnati after pulling away from the Bengals for a 42-21 triumph last Sunday. Winning out over the final three weeks would give the Steelers the division crown, but they will take the mission on a game-by-game basis.

"Our focus is 110 percent on Atlanta and we're doing everything we can to play the best football we can," quarterback Ben Roethlisberger told reporters this week when asked about the team's tendency to struggle against losing teams (three of Pittsburgh's five losses have been to sub-.500 squads). While Atlanta would fit the bill at 5-8, it is tied atop the weak NFC South following a 43-37 loss at Green Bay on Monday. Pittsburgh has won 10 of the last 12 encounters, including an overtime triumph at home in the previous meeting in 2010.

TV: 1 p.m. ET, CBS. LINE: Steelers -2. O/U: 54.5

ABOUT THE STEELERS (8-5): Le'Veon Bell bucked a common trend by not hitting the rookie wall and finishing strong last season with his hardest running down the stretch. He is doing the same in 2014 but in a much more dramatic fashion, as the AFC Offensive Player of the Week has amassed an amazing 711 yards from scrimmage as well as five touchdowns over the last three games. The line in front of Bell could be fortified if right tackle Marcus Gilbert - who has missed the past two games with knee and ankle issues - is able to play after returning to practice this week.

ABOUT THE FALCONS (5-8): Fans in Atlanta are holding their breath on the status of star receiver Julio Jones, who has missed practice time due to a hip injury and is considered questionable for Sunday. Jones and his partnership with quarterback Matt Ryan has virtually carried the Falcons of late, as the fourth-year wide receiver has averaged eight catches for 138.3 yards over the team's 3-2 stretch while scoring touchdowns in each of the last three contests. His franchise-record 259 yards in the loss to the Packers also gave him the franchise's single-season mark (currently 1,428) and put him on pace for the fourth-highest total in NFL history.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Steelers WR Antonio Brown leads the NFL with 105 catches and needs five more to become the fourth player in league history to have 110 in back-to-back seasons.

2. Ryan is 39-12 all-time at home.

3. Roethlisberger needs two TD passes to become the 17th QB with 250.

PREDICTION: Steelers 31, Falcons 30