Roethlisberger throws 4 TD passes, Steelers roll Colts

The Indianapolis Colts face the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday Night Football, and both teams are now battling to make the postseason.

The Colts should provide an update on Hasselbeck’s status Monday. Once Hasselbeck starts having to go deep, anything could happen.

Roethlisberger, 33, has had his injury problems this season, most seriously the MCL sprain that sidelined him for four games.

Big Ben and the Steelers offense have a responsibility to cut down on their giveaways.

Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers come through in must-win scenario, but the road to an AFC wild-card berth didn’t get any easier Sunday.

That was just the beginning.

Lest anyone has forgotten, Roethlisberger used the Colts’ defense for target practice in 2014. Watch Colts vs Steelers online free lives streaming SNF on NBC Sports Live Extra tonight without The Walking Dead eating into your viewing time. That’s a 142.5 passer rating.

Those two mistakes gave the Colts possession at the Pittsburgh 11- and 25-yard lines. The veteran mustered only 162 yards, was intercepted twice and led the Colts to only three points on three drives that began in Pittsburgh territory.

Indianapolis took the lead in the second on Hasselbeck’s 9-yard touchdown pass to running back Frank Gore. Lest not forget about Andre Johnson now playing in Indianapolis.

Maybe leaving points on the field early wouldn’t have mattered.

The truth of the matter is, the WTHR.com editors may just as well re-run my column from last year’s one-sided loss to the Steelers and just change a couple of the numbers. One (Roethlisberger) operated in a clean passing pocket.

Roethlisberger completed 18 of 27 passes for 219 yards in the first half.

The other (Hasselbeck) found himself in a hazardous work environment. “A scan will let you know when it’s healed”. Not only will they have the advantage of going up against backup offensive linemen, they’ll also be dealing with a 40-year-old quarterback in Hasselbeck, who doesn’t bring any of the same mobility to the table that Luck does when he’s on the field.

Putting pressure on Hasselbeck will start with a Steelers defense that shuts down the ground game. The Steelers managed to force two interceptions and a sack resulting in a fumble.

Given that, the Steelers should be able to find some success rushing the quarterback.

Brown caught two of Roethlisberger’s touchdown passes, finishing with 118 yards on eight receptions.

The Indianapolis Colts are 24th against the run defensively in the National Football League yielding just over 115 yards per game. T.Y. Hilton is always unsafe and Hasselbeck has Donte Moncrief as his leading receiver with 584 yards and five scores.

There’s no denying it has been a rough season so far for Luck, the No. 1 overall pick in 2012, who has 15 touchdowns and 12 interceptions and a 2-5 record as a starter this season. All of them are playing one another, with the exception of the New York Jets playing the an NFC team, and the team with the poorer records is hosting, except for the Pittsburgh Steelers who are even with the Colts.

Where They Stand: There are five teams in the AFC sitting at 6-5 heading into Week 13 and two of them take the field tonight in a game that has major playoff ramifications.

That won’t be the case with Miller assuming that he is ruled out an hour before the Sunday night matchup. “They played well in all three phases”.

If you’re a glass-half-full sort of person – I’m thinking Johnnie Walker Black – you might be inclined to look at it this way: Next week, the Colts play at Jacksonville.