Even though the Pittsburgh Steelers and Kansas City Chiefs have been in the same conference since 1970, these two teams, with a combined 44 postseason appearances between 1970 and 2015, have somehow faced each other only once in the postseason.That game ended 27-24 in the Chiefs' favor 24 years ago. Kansas City, led by quarterback Joe Montana, running back Marcus Allen and defensive stars Derrick Thomas and Neil Smith, went onto the 1993 AFC title game, where it lost to Buffalo.The Chiefs haven't been to the AFC Championship Game since then, while the Steelers have made it eight times in that span.One of these teams will make it back and face the New England Patriots for the right to go to Super Bowl LI. Read on to find some predictions for what should end up being a close contest. Game DetailsWhen:Sunday, Jan. 15 at 8:20 p.m. ETWhere: Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MissouriTelevision:NBCTickets:ScoreBig.comOver/Under:45Spread:Kansas City (-1.5)Prediction 1: Bell Dominates Once AgainGreen Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is playing better than anyone in football right now, but Bell is a close second.The Steelers running back is a man on fire. In just 12 regular-season games, Bell gained 1,884 yards from scrimmage and scored nine touchdowns. He finished in the top five in the league in rushing, despite missing a quarter of the season.Bell had no problem against the Chiefs defense when Pittsburgh crushed Kansas City 43-14 in Week 4, gaining 178 total yards.Although Kansas City should perform much better this time, Bell poses a matchup problem for any defense. The Steelers passing game might have serious problems, so Bell could be called upon 30-plus times to keep Pittsburgh in the game.Prediction 2: Chiefs Special Teams Prove to Be the DifferenceOn Jan. 8, Paul Zeise of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote about the Steelers special teams unit's poor play this season (and more specifically against Miami last Sunday).The absolute worst unit to take the field wasthe Steelers special teams. That shouldnt come as a shock to anyone because its been awful all year long.The Steelers' dynamic playmakers on offense and defense so far have been able to overcome the ineptitude of the special teams and the resulting bad field position.But next week they will [face] the Kansas City Chiefs, who are very good on special teams and feature one of the best kick returners in the NFL, rookie Tyreek Hill. That alone makes the game scary for the Steelers.Pittsburgh has a few problems this Sunday. If the Steelers kick and punt to Hill, who has three return touchdowns this season, he can easily go for a long touchdown, which could be the deciding factor in what looks set to be a relatively low-scoring game on paper (and in Las Vegas, where the over/under is 45, the lowest total on the weekend).If the Steelers don't kick to Hill, they'll likely have to kick short on kickoffs or punt the ball out of bounds, leading to better field position for the Chiefs.It's a double-edged sword, and the Steelers can't win either way.Prediction 3: Chiefs 20, Steelers 17The Steelers have the edge on the ground.The Chiefs have the edge on special teams.But who has the edge in the air'The answer might determine the outcome of this game. The guess here is that it is Kansas City, even though Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and wide receiver Antonio Brown will likely have busts in Canton someday.Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith has an 11-1 ratio of touchdowns to interceptions in the postseason to go along with a 99.1 QB rating. He's connected well with tight end Travis Kelce lately, who led all NFL tight ends in receiving yards this season with 1,125. And Hill is always a threat on offense as well.The Steelers' two-fold problem: (a) Big Ben is a much worse road quarterback, as he's thrown nearly as many interceptions (eight) as touchdowns (nine) this season, and (b) the Steelers might not have tight end Ladarius Green, who is listed as doubtful with a concussion. Green is a matchup nightmare who could have been a difference-maker in this game.Yes, Pittsburgh crushed Kansas City last time around, but the circumstances were different then. Pittsburgh was angry, coming off a 34-3 embarrassment to Philadelphia the week before, and it wanted to come out strong on national television the next week. Kansas City really had no chance.Since that game, the Chiefs have come together as a team and gone 10-2. Furthermore, this game is in Arrowhead Stadium, where a raucous crowd will look to help their team to its first AFC title game in 24 years.This game will be close all the way through, but the Chiefs will edge out the Steelers.
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