Ravens vs. Steelers 2015, ‘Thursday Night Football’ preview: Pittsburgh in key AFC North battle without Big Ben

The Pittsburgh Steelers host the Baltimore Ravens in a primetime matchup of AFC North rivals Thursday night that could have a huge impact on the early-season division race. A fourth straight loss for the winless Ravens would all but eliminate them from contention. A loss by a depleted Steelers team would leave three of the four clubs with at least two losses and create significant separation in the standings for the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals.

The Ravens are in uncharted territory entering Week 4. This is the first time in franchise history they've started 0-3, and they are on the verge of their first four-game losing streak since 2007. They are now staring at the near-impossible task of trying to make the playoffs after losing their first three games of the season. Just three teams have done that in the past 25 years, and none since the 1998 Bills.

A popular Super Bowl pick entering the season, the Ravens are now one of four winless teams through three games and are a lot closer to getting the top pick in the upcoming draft than playing for the Lombardi Trophy in February. Many are calling them the biggest disappointment in the league, and it's hard to argue against that. They are suddenly three games behind the division-leading Bengals, and we aren't even a quarter of the way through the season.

The Steelers are 2-1, but they also face a tough task in trying to reach the postseason without franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who is expected to miss 4-6 weeks with a knee injury. Mike Vick takes over as the starting quarterback, and although he won't be able to match Big Ben's gaudy passing stats, he's a seasoned veteran who should be capable of taking advantage of the incredible talent around him on offense.

There was some good news coming out of Pittsburgh's win over the Rams on Sunday, notably the return of Le'Veon Bell (132 total yards on 26 touches) and a defense that shut down St. Louis a week after doing the same to San Francisco. Those two positive takeaways should give Pittsburgh some confidence that it can steal a few games while Roethlisberger is sidelined.

Vick, who is 6-13 as a starter since 2012, is coming off his worst season as a pro in a part-time role for the Jets last year. Among quarterbacks with at least 100 attempts in 2014, he ranked last in passer rating (68.3), yards per attempt (5.0) and completion percentage (52.9).

During his prime, Vick was lauded as a dynamic game changer at quarterback. But he is now going to have to be more of a game manager, and that could be a problem for a guy who has never been known as an accurate passer: just once in his 12 previous seasons has Vick completed more than 60 percent of his passes. Simply put, his job will be to make sure that the Steelers' offensive stars -- Bell and Antonio Brown -- are able to do theirs.

The Ravens have struggled mightily on both sides of the ball during their 0-3 start. Their running game is a black hole, ranking 28th in yards per rush (3.3) and tied for 27th in rush yards per game (72.7). They have only one playmaker on offense, 36-year-old Steve Smith, who has more than double the number of targets, receptions and receiving yards of anyone else on the team.

On defense, they rank 26th in points allowed, but their most glaring weakness is their swiss-cheese secondary, which has allowed the fourth-most passing yards. Jimmy Smith, who got a four-year, $41 million extension this offseason, has been really disappointing despite his two interceptions. He's ranked 66th among cornerbacks, per Pro Football Focus' grades, and has already been torched for more yards (275) and touchdowns (2) in three games than he did in eight games last year.

Justin Forsett - The Ravens' running back has been a shell of himself this season. One year after leading the league in yards per rush (5.4), he's now averaging just 3.2 yards per carry and has yet to find the end zone on the ground. Forsett has been brutally ineffective through three games, and if he continues this downward spiral, he could easily lose touches to backups Javorius Allen and Lorenzo Taliaferro.

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