The New York Jets are in the Steel City today for a rematch with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The two teams, which met at Heinz Field in week 15, will square off in the 2011 AFC Championship Game at 6:30pm ET tonight; the highly anticipating showdown will be broadcast live on CBS. New York Jets vs Pittsburgh Steelers Odds have Mike Tomlin's squad listed as a -4 against the spread home favorite and the Over/Under set at 38.
New York headed into the playoffs having 
lost three of its last five games, but it did score an impressive 22-17 victory at Pittsburgh in week 15 and it drubbed AFC East rival Buffalo 38-7 in the regular season finale.
Apparently that was all the momentum the Jets needed because, like last year, they have shocked in the postseason, beating the Colts 17-16 in a Wild Card game at Indianapolis and the hosting Patriots 28-21 in last weekend's Divisional game.
New York's defense gave up 26 first downs and 372 total yards to New England, but they kept Tom Brady and company out of the end zone in two of the Pats four trips inside the red zone. The Jets also sacked Brady five times, something they hope to duplicate today against the Steelers injury plagued offensive line.
Rex Ryan's troops sacked Ben Roethlisberger three times when these two teams hooked up a few weeks ago, but the Steelers still managed 377 total yards, 146 of which came on the ground, and 25 first downs. If Pittsburgh posts those kind of numbers this evening, the Jets will need another Brad Smith kickoff return for a touchdown to win.
The Steelers come into tonight's contest having won seven of their last eight games. Despite heading into the postseason with some positive momentum, Pittsburgh's playoff run looked as though it would be brief with the team trailing Baltimore 21-7 at halftime in last weekend's Divisional round game. However, the team scored 24 second half points in rallying to a 31-24 victory.
The Ravens offense, which benefited from two Pittsburgh turnovers, managed just 12 first downs and 126 total yards against the Steelers vaunted defense. Mark Sanchez and the New York offense would be fool-hardy to expect much better tonight.
Pittsburgh fields the best run defense in the league and they figure to make the Jets one-dimensional. That does not bode well for Sanchez, particularly if the Steelers jump out to an early lead and the Jets are forced to throw the ball more often than they would like.
New York's best chance at victory will be pressuring Roethlisberger into errant throws because the Jets' offense, while effective at times, is not built to carry a team, especially against a defense like the one Pittsburgh possesses.
NFL Odds Betting Trend: The Steelers are 9-1 straight up and 7-3 against the spread in their last 10 games as a home favorite with a total between 37 and 41.
New York Jets vs Pittsburgh Steelers 2011 AFC Championship Odds:
New York Jets +4 (-110), Over 38 (-110), +175 (Moneyline)
Pittsburgh Steelers -4 (-110), Under 38 (-110), -210 (Moneyline)
