New England Patriots vs Pittsburgh Steelers in National Football League playoffs

He has not attended a game in Foxboro since the Deflategate controversy began in 2015.

Ben Roethlisberger waited 12 years for a playoff rematch with Tom Brady.

Here are some New England Patriots stories around the web that every Patriots fan should read.

The New England Patriots are set to play in their sixth straight AFC Championship game Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Gillette Stadium.

They understand the significance of their streak. “What is said or what is done off the football field it really doesn’t matter”.

But they also know the stresses of playing in this game.

But the fact that this year’s game is at home could factor into whether they are able to make a return trip to the Super Bowl. It’s important not only to let each side have its say on this thing, and present the comments in their full splendor, and not just settle for the cheap headline jab or offer up baiting or misleading storylines.

The Steelers managed to advance past the Kansas City Chiefs on the road without scoring a touchdown, but they will probably need at least three to win at New England and make it to their ninth Super Bowl.

The teams face a delicate balance.

Do YOU want to write for GiveMeSport? You earn your way to this game.

Smith denied hearing what Brady said, but even the drama-averse Bill Belichick couldn’t resist a swipe at the safety. And he did so once more Wednesday.

This one will be just as good as the NFC championship game. “And they’ll decide it Sunday night”. “It should be good football to watch, and I’m pretty sure both Ben and Brady will be into it”. We’re not playing tennis.

“We put it behind us”.

“What I’d hoped for and expected”.

Pittsburgh Steelers fans wave awful towels during their 2011 AFC Championship game against the New York Jets at Heinz Field on January 23, 2011 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. You’ve got one game to get to the Super Bowl.

He knows about the trappings of Sunday’s game, the pressures that are building. “I think it’s just important for us to focus on what our job is, and that’s to go out and play well”. When that type of competition goes head to head against each other, it should be a show out there.

But this isn’t any other week. “The helmets and the (trophy)?” When you can see your goal, and it’s within arm’s reach, everybody turns up a little bit more.

Not if you’re the Patriots.

The Steelers will have to find the end zone a few times to have any chance of beating New England … and they will … but it won’t be enough. “So the things that we didn’t do right, we’ve been working on in accordance to how they’re going to help us this week”.

This is not going to be an easy game.

The Steelers will look to breakdown New England’s defense with Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown, two of the NFL’s elite weapons.

Another quirky aspect of this game against the Steelers is that even though the Patriots won 27-16 in Pittsburgh on October 23, and Bell had 81 yards on 21 carries against them, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger did not play in that game because he had just undergone anthroscopic knee surgery.

Player for player, I think, the Steelers are the better, more balanced team.