After Santa Claus is done delivering presents on Christmas morning , the NFL will be delivering a gift of its own on Christmas afternoon: an AFC North showdown between the Ravens and the Steelers in Pittsburgh.

With a win over the Ravens, the Steelers could get the sweetest gift of all on Sunday in the form of a division title. A Pittsburgh win would clinch the AFC North title and the automatic playoff berth that comes with it.

On the other hand, the Ravens could keep their division title hopes alive with a win in Pittsburgh. Winning big games at Heinz Field is actually something the Ravens have gotten good at lately. Including the postseason, Baltimore has won two straight in Pittsburgh.

Overall, the Ravens have won six of their past seven against the Steelers. That's probably why the Ravens made the Steelers a Christmas card.

If defense wins championships, then the Ravens have to feel pretty good about their chances to win this game. Baltimore will head to Heinz Field with the NFL's fifth-ranked defense in terms of total yards. More importantly though, the Ravens have the NFL's second-ranked rushing defense, a unit that's going to need to be on its game to shut down Le'Veon Bell.

Despite serving a three-game suspension to start the season, Bell still has 1,146 rushing yards on the year, which ranks third in the NFL. Bell has basically been on fire since Week 11, averaging 142.6 rushing yards per game over the past five weeks (to put that in perspective, NFL-leading rusher Ezekiel Elliott is averaging 109.2 yards per game in that same span).

Hitting 142 yards against the Ravens won't be easy though. Baltimore is giving up just 82.1 rushing yards per game on the season.

No matter what happens in this game, either the Steelers or the Ravens will end up winning the AFC North this year, which shouldn't come as a shock to anyone.

Since the division was formed in 2002, these two teams have combined to win 10 of the 14 titles, and they're going to add one more to that total this year.

Anyway, if you tune in on Sunday, you'll probably notice the the Steelers are wearing brand new uniforms. For the game against the Ravens, Pittsburgh will be rocking an all-black uniform combo for the first time ever.

The Steelers are wearing that all-black combo as part of the NFL's Color Rush campaign. Although every other team wore their Color Rush uniforms on a Thursday, the Steelers didn't get to wear their Color Rush uniforms on a Thursday because their one Thursday game this year was on Thanksgiving, a day where the NFL decided not to do Color Rush.

Since they couldn't roll out the Color Rush uniforms earlier this season, the Steelers decided that the all-black uniforms would be perfect for Christmas, and that's probably because black is the same color as coal and the Steelers are hoping to give the Ravens the NFL equivalent of coal in their stocking on Sunday.

How to Watch

  • What: Baltimore Ravens vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
  • When: Sunday, Dec. 25, 4:30 p.m. ET
  • Where: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • TV: NFL Network (Mike Tirico and Doug Flutie on the call, Heather Cox on the sideline). This game will only be available on NFL Network, except in Pittsburgh and Baltimore, where it will be shown on NFLN and a free local channel.
  • Streaming: Live streaming is available by clicking here, but it's only available if you have a cable/satellite package that includes NFL Network, and then only if your provider offers it.
  • Online: NFL Game Pass (Available to watch online after midnight)
  • Odds: The Steelers are are 5.5-point favorites (via SportsLine)

Injury Report

Ravens

Steelers

Prisco's Pick

This is one of the top games this week with the division title on the line. If the Steelers win it, they win the division. They lost to the Ravens earlier, but that will change here. It will be a tough game, but the Steelers offense will get the best of the Ravens defense in the end.

Pick: Steelers 23, Ravens 14