It's fright-night for the injury-depleted Ravens

	Ravens running back Jamal Lewis has struggled this season. He is averaging just 2.9 yards per carry. Jamie Squire/Getty Images
	Perloff's Primetime Picks Week Prediction Outcome 1 N.E. 27, Oak. 24 N.E. wins 30-20 1 Atl. 23, Phi. 20 Atl. wins 14-10 2 N.O. 24, NYG 21 NYG wins 27-10 2 Dal. 23, Wash. 19 Wash. wins 14-13 3 Den. 31, K.C. 28 Den. wins 30-10 4 G.B. 28, Car. 24 Car. wins 32-29 5 Pit. 30, S.D. 21 Pit. wins 24-22 6 Ind. 42, StL. 21 Ind. wins 38-20 7 Atl. 31, NYJ. 16 Atl. wins 27-14 Perloff's MNF Record: 6-3

On paper, this game looks like a Pittsburgh rout. But in a rivalry like this, you can throw out the records, forget the statistics ... oh, who am I kidding, this game isn't going to be close. The Steelers are 10-0 at home on Monday night under Bill Cowher and Baltimore is in a deep slump offensively. The Ravens haven't scored a touchdown since the first quarter of a game two weeks ago against Detroit, and the Steelers' defense is just hitting its stride. And Baltimore's main strength, its defense, won't be the same with linebacker Ray Lewis and safety Ed Reed both out.

The Ravens Win If ...

... they realize the situation they're in and the entire team has the game of its life. If they lose tonight, they fall to 2-5 and are basically out of contention in the AFC North. Owner Steve Bisciotti will almost certainly cut ties with coach Brian Billick if Baltimore fails to reach the postseason for the second season in a row.

Ravens star running back Jamal Lewis has struggled all season; he's averaging only 2.9 yards per run. If Lewis doesn't get hot early, Billick will give plenty of carries to backup Chester Taylor, who's averaging 6.0 yards per carry. Either way, the Steelers' defense will be gearing up for the run because Baltimore quarterback Anthony Wright has been ineffective. This might be Wright's last week starting as Kyle Boller is getting closer to returning from a toe injury.

Baltimore's defense still has talent without Lewis and Reed, but it doesn't have the same big-play capability. The Ravens have created just six turnovers this year, and Pittsburgh isn't a team that turns the ball over easily. But for Baltimore to have a chance, it desperately needs a big play or two out of the D. Deion Sanders looks slower than ever this year, but an interception by Prime Time might be just what the doctor ordered to get this defense fired up.

The Steelers Win If ...

They do exactly what they've been doing: totally stuff their opponent's defense and run the ball all night long. Last week, Willie Parker led the Steelers to a 27-13 win over the Bengals with 131 yards on the ground. Jerome Bettis also had 56 tough rushing yards in the win over Cincy, and could have an impact tonight. Bettis ran for 117 yards against the Ravens in a 20-7 Week 14 win in Pittsburgh.

Linebacker Clark Haggans returns after missing three weeks with a sports hernia. Haggans got off to a tremendous start this season with three sacks in his first three games, and he'll be especially fired up to be back in action.

Willie Parker leads the Stelers with 539 rushing yards this season. Andy Lyons/Getty Images

The Steelers' defense was outstanding in the win over the Bengals and should have its way against the Ravens' offense. If Pittsburgh manages to knock Baltimore's Wright out the game, Billick said he might go with Boller as his second quarterback. But if Boller's not ready, Kordell Stewart would play quarterback once again in Pittsburgh.

The Outcome

Remember a couple of weeks ago when Indy hosted St. Louis on Monday night, and everything pointed to a Colts blowout. Then the Rams seemed to feed off the energy of playing on the road under the lights and had Indy on the ropes until QB Marc Bulger got hurt. There's a chance the Ravens will respond to this desperate situation with the same kind of fire and make a game of it. I actually expect Lewis to run hard for Baltimore tonight and the Ravens' depleted defense will give it everything it can. The problem is the Ravens' passing game. If Baltimore gets into a third-and-long situation, the Steelers' pass rush is going to have a field day. Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger will throw his usual 14 passes, with 10 completions and at least one long TD to Hines Ward. Then Parker and Bettis will take over and finish off the poor Ravens.

Pittsburgh 34, Baltimore 13