First place will be on the

line in the AFC North on ESPN's Sunday Night Football when the Baltimore Ravens pay a visit to their hated rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers. Kickoff from Heinz Field is set for primetime in Week 9 at 8:20 (ET).
Though the Cincinnati Bengals are still right there with these teams at 5-2 through seven games, no one really believes that they are going to be able to survive the second half of the season when they have to take on both the Ravens and Steelers twice each.
It's no doubt a crucial match for both the Steelers and Ravens, but especially so for Pittsburgh (6-2 SU, 4-4 ATS). The Steelers might have the top record in the AFC right now at 6-2, but a loss in this one drops them to 0-2 in division with both losses coming against the Ravens (5-2 SU, 4-3 ATS).
Though Baltimore's lead would only be a half-game in the division, that half-game is in the loss column, plus the Steelers would have to overcome the tiebreaker to avoid having to go on the road in the playoffs, assuming that they get that far.
The key to this game is going to be the protection for Ben Roethlisberger. The first time these two squads met in Week 1, Big Ben was sacked four times and pressured countless other times. He was intercepted three times and lost two fumbles, accounting for five of Pittsburgh's seven turnovers in the brutal 35-7 defeat.
The Ravens have one of the top defenses in football, ranking No. 1 in the league at 263.3 YPG and No. 2 in scoring at 15.7 PPG. The defense has seven interceptions and 14 recovered fumbles, accounting for four touchdowns in the interim.
There are six players with at least a pair of sacks as well, led by Terrell Suggs, who has bagged six QBs in seven games.
Offensively, Anquan Boldin could be in for another big day. The former Florida State Seminole had seven catches last week for 145 yards in the comeback win over the Arizona Cardinals, giving him four games this year with at least 74 receiving yards. Boldin enters Sunday just 108 yards shy of the 9,000-yard plateau for his career.
But of course, Pittsburgh's front seven is going to have to be all over Ray Rice as well to have any degree of success. Rice had 149 total yards and two touchdowns the first time that these two teams met, and he is averaging 123 total yards and a trip to the end zone in every game that he plays.
The Steelers rank No. 2 in the league in total defense at 270.8 YPG and No. 3 in scoring at 17.4 PPG. The bad news for this unit though, is that it could be without Chris Hoke (neck) and James Farrior (calf), and it is doubtful that either LaMarr Woodley (hamstring) or James Harrison (eye) play.
Also on the injury report are Hines Ward and Emmanuel Sanders, two of the top four receivers that Roethlisberger has to work with.
Strangely enough with all of this defense that both sides have to work with, the series has been marked by high-scoring affairs. The 'over' is 6-1-1 in the last eight meetings between the rivals here in the Steel City, and 8-3-1 in the last 12 meetings overall.
Pittsburgh is 5-2-1 ATS and 5-3 SU over the course of the last eight meetings in this series, including taking two out of three last year.
Despite their injuries, the Steelers are getting the nod by three points by the oddsmakers. The total has dropped just a tad from 42½ at the start of the week to 41½ as of Wednesday afternoon.
It is going to be cold Sunday night in Pittsburgh with temperatures expected in the low-40s, but there is no chance for rain.