The 2017 AFC Championship Game features the New England Patriots facing the Pittsburgh Steelers after both teams' playoff performances. Tom Brady and the Patriots will look to improve after a previous win against the Steelers, who had an explosive offense led by Ben Roethlisberger and Le'Veon Bell. The matchup is anticipated to be competitive, with predictions slightly favoring the Patriots at 27-24.

1. Title:AFCChampionshipGame 2017: SteelersvsPatriotsliveStream, TV Info,Odds,Predictions
You needknowtoAFC ChampionshipGame 2017 : Steelersvs Patriots- The New EnglandPatriots
cruisedtoa 34-16 winoverthe HoustonTexansinthe divisional rounddespite some sloppyplay,butthe
teamwill face a much greaterchallenge Sundaywhenithoststhe PittsburghSteelersinthe AFC
ChampionshipGame 2017.
SteelersvsPatriots
Tom Brady wasnot hissharpest,ashe matchedhisregular-seasoninterceptiontotal withapairof picks
againstthe Texans.Since the Steelersboastarguablythe NFL'smostexplosive offense,Bradywillneed
to reboundforthe Patriotsto make theirsixthstraightconferencetitle game asuccess.
Let's take a lookat the schedule forSunday'stilt,aswell asthe oddsanda breakdownof thisbattle fora
tripto the SuperBowl 2017.
NewEnglandprevailed27-16 whenthese teamsmetinthe regularseasoninWeek7, butPittsburgh
was withoutBenRoethlisbergerbecause of aknee injury.The Steelersstill outgainedthe Patriots375-
362 intotal yards, as Bradyfailedtocreate much downfield,recordingjust222 passingyards.
SteelersvsPatriots live
Sunday'sgame lookslike itwill be even more competitivewithRoethlisbergerbackatfull strength,and
Pittsburghhasimproveddefensively.The New Englandlosswasthe secondinafour-game losingstreak
for the Steelers,buttheyhave allowedmore than25 pointsjustonce since theirlastlosstothe Dallas
CowboysinWeek10. Pittsburghfinishedthe seasonstrongtorank12th inthe NFL intotal defense.
That is a positive signforthe Steelers,whohave allowedjust28 combinedpointsintheirtwoplayoff
wins.Thisteamissensational onoffense,asRoethlisbergerhasa wealthof passingoptions,which
createsspace all overthe field.
Le'VeonBell isalsoone of the league'seliterunningbacks,andhe ison an absolute tearthispostseason,
perNFL on CBS:
NewEnglandwill focusonshuttingdownBell inanefforttotake awayPittsburgh'soffensivebalance.
The Patriotsfinishedthe regularseasonasthe league'sthird-rankedrushingdefense,andBell totaleda
pedestrian81yards on 21 carriesin the previousmeeting.
Thiscouldput the NewEnglanddefensive backsinone-on-one coveragewithoutmuchsafetyhelp.That
meanscontainingAntonioBrowninspace,whichisatremendouschallenge.Brown,whocaught106
passesthisseason,wassolidinWeek7againstthe Patriots,whodida fine jobof guardingthe league's
top receiversduringthe regularseason:

2. DeAndre Hopkinscaughtsix passesfor65 yards on Saturday,buthe sufferedfrompoorquarterback
play,unlike Brown.
Evenwithitsfantasticoffense,Pittsburghwill needtoslow downBradytohave any chance at advancing
to the SuperBowl.
The keyto doingthat inrecentseasonshasbeencreatingpressure tomake Bradyuncomfortable.The
Patriotsusuallystruggle againstbig,athleticfrontsevensthatcanrush the quarterback. Here are
Brady's numbersinhislossesoverthe lasttwoyears(minusthe 2015 seasonfinale againstMiami),with
the commondenominatorbeingteamsthatcanget afterthe quarterback:
AFC ChampionshipGame 2017 live
Evenin Saturday'swin,the TexansfrustratedBrady.He completedlessthan50 percentof his throws
and waspickedoff twice.
Bud Dupree emergedasaformidable pass-rusherlate inthe seasonandinthe playoffsforPittsburgh,
and JamesHarrisonisstill gettingitdone atage 38. These twoguyswill needbigdays,asBrady should
have no problemdissectingayoungsecondarythatfinished24thin opposingcompletionpercentage
and 16th inpassingyardsallowed.
Thirddownwill alsobe a key for bothteams,giventhatbothdefenseswill wanttolimitthe numberof
snapsfor the opposingoffenses.NewEnglandexcelledinthissituation,rankingfourthoffensivelywitha
45.8 percentsuccessrate while holdingopponentstoa 36.9 percentclip.
Pittsburghconvertedon41.1 percentof itsthird downs,goodfor12th inthe league.The teamwasnot
strongdefensively,allowingopponentstoconvertatthe same rate, whichranked23rd.
Thismatchup isalmosttoo close tocall.Both teamscan score pointsinbunches,andeachhas playoff
experience throughoutitsroster,startingatquarterback.However,Roethlisbergerstruggledawayfrom
HeinzFieldthisseason,asSportsIllustrated'sGregA.Bedardnoted:
Patriots vs Steelers
Roethlisbergerwasfine againstthe KansasCityChiefsonSunday,andthe playoffspresentmuch
differentcircumstancesthanthe regularseason.Yetthese minornuancescouldhave impactsinsucha
close game.
The Steelershave ahigherceilingdue totheirdynamicoffense,buttheirperformance volatilitymakes
themharderto bank oncomparedto the Patriots'consistency.ExpectNew Englandtomake fewer
mistakesandmove onto the SuperBowl.

3. Prediction:NewEngland27,Pittsburgh24
Statisticsare courtesyof NFL.com.Oddsare accordingto OddsShark. Patriots vs Steelerslive