STEELERS GAMEDAY INFO
Week 9, Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3) vs. Green Bay Packers (3-5)
Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, 1:00 p.m.
Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh (68,400, grass)
Broadcast
TV: CBS, KDKA 2 locally (Ian Eagle, Charles Davis, Evan Washburn)
Radio: Steelers Radio Network, 102.5 WDVE-FM (Bill Hillgrove, Craig Wolfley, Max Starks); Westwood One (Kevin Kugler, Ross Tucker)
SN Coverage: Alan Saunders, Nick Farabaugh, Ed Thompson
WPXI Weather: Mostly cloudy, 53 degrees. Winds S 3 mph.
Lines: Steelers -3, Steelers -175, over/under 38.5
Betway sportsbook promo: First-bet reset up to $250 back in bonus bets if your first bet loses.
AT STAKE
The Steelers need a win to keep pace in what appears to be a brutal AFC Wild Card picture. The Steelers are currently in second place in the AFC North and are the No. 5 seed overall in the AFC. Still, as the season reaches its midpoint, 11 AFC teams are within one game of .500. Pittsburgh must win this game before two massive divisional games against the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals.
With a win, the Packers are not that far off from the NFC playoff picture if they can continue to string wins together, but with the Lions, Chargers, and Chiefs coming up on the plate, this feels like a must-win for those hopes if they want to keep them alive.
STEELERS INJURY REPORT
Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and defensive tackle Montravius Adams will miss this game against the Packers with injuries. Meanwhile, defensive tackle Cam Heyward will play once again but is still dealing with the swelling after coming off of core muscle surgery.
Linebacker Elandon Roberts will tough out a knee injury to play. Cole Holcomb is out for the season after suffering a knee injury. Running back Anthony McFarland is making his return from a knee injury after being activated from injured reserve.
Tight end Pat Freiermuth is still out with a hamstring injury and is on injured reserve.
| Player | Injury | Date | Prognosis | Roster Status |
| OLB Nick Herbig | Calf | Nov. 10 | Unknown | Active, LP on Fri. |
| DE Cam Heyward | Groin | Nov. 8 | Unknown | Active, LP on Fri.. |
| LB Elandon Roberts | Knee | Nov. 8 | Unknown | Active, FP on Fri. |
| ILB Cole Holcomb | Left knee | Nov. 2 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| NT Montravius Adams | Right ankle | Nov. 2 | Day-to-day | Active, OUT vs. Packers. |
| FS Minkah Fitzpatrick | Right hamstring | Oct. 29 | Day-to-day | Active, OUT vs. Packers. |
| TE Pat Freiermuth | Hamstring | Oct. 19 | Week-to-week | Injured reserve (Week 11) |
| LB Chapelle Russell II | Knee | Aug. 11 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| CB Cory Trice | Right ACL tear | Aug. 1 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| RB Alfonzo Graham | Torn right labrum | July 29 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| DT Renell Wren | Torn right Achilles tendon | May 17 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
TRANSACTIONS
The Steelers released elevated linebacker Tariq Carpenter and safety Trenton Thompson from the practice squad to the active roster for this game. Green Bay signed safety Innis Gaines to their active roster to fill the open spot left by the Rasul Douglas trade amid defensive back injuries.
THE LAST TIME
Aaron Rodgers lit up the Steelers’ secondary for two passing touchdowns and an additional rushing touchdown as the Steelers offense sputtered at Lambeau Field in Green Bay in a 27-17 loss under Ben Roethlisberger in his final season in 2021.
STEELERS-PACKERS SERIES
The Packers lead the overall series against the Steelers, 20-16.
However, the key thing is that all of the recent wins against the Steelers have come at Lambeau Field or on a neutral site. Green Bay has not won in Pittsburgh since 1970. Back then, Bart Starr and Terry Bradshaw were the quarterbacks of each team. Over that time span, Green Bay is 0-6 in Pittsburgh.
This game has many iconic iterations, though. Super Bowl XLV, where Rodgers led the Packers to their last Super Bowl over Roethlisberger, is the latest classic. But Roethlisberger hitting Mike Wallace on a game-winning touchdown while throwing for 503 yards in a victory at Heinz Field is another matchup that sticks out in recent clashes.
PITTSBURGH CONNECTIONS
Pittsburgh’s Chandon Sullivan, Tariq Carpenter, and Montravius Adams will see their former team come to Acrisure Stadium. They both started their careers with the Packers. So, the Steelers have several of those ex-Packer connections but there are none going the other way.
There are a couple of Penn State Nittany Lions on the other side of this one. Former Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford and offensive tackle Rasheed Walker will play for the Packers. Walker will start if left tackle Yosh Nijman, dealing with a neck injury, can not play.
FEELING THE LOVE
The key matchup of this game will be between two similar quarterbacks Jordan Love and Kenny Pickett. To say the least, both players can become volatile and miss open throws at times. Love is in his first season starting, and after a strong start, surrendered a turnover in five straight games before last week, where he played mistake-free football en route to a 20-3 win over the Rams. Pickett has not thrown an interception in four games but has had some interception luck aid that.
In other words, there is likely to be a swing in this game decided by the quarterbacks and turnovers. Pittsburgh’s defense is one of the most opportunistic defenses in the NFL, aiding Pittsburgh to their 5-3 record. Whichever offense takes care of the football will likely win this game.