Steelers vs. Chiefs 2017 picks and predictions: Experts split on Divisional round matchup

There is a ton of talk about revenge in the playoffs — for a previous postseason loss, for a lopsided loss during the regular season, for going up against an old team. The truth is that the Kansas City Chiefs don’t need extra motivation going into Sunday’s Divisional round game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Both teams are as hungry for a Super Bowl win as the other, and their game on Sunday is just another step in getting there. The Chiefs, well-rested after a bye week thanks to owning the second seed in the AFC, may have suffered a blowout loss to the Steelers in the regular season, but this is an entirely different ballgame.

The Steelers took their first major step toward a Super Bowl when they bested the Miami Dolphins in the Wild Card round. They happened to be avenging a particularly awful regular season loss with that win. The Steelers beat the Dolphins last weekend by 18 points in the incredibly cold and rough conditions at Heinz Field.

This weekend, they will be traveling to Arrowhead Stadium. It should be cold and rainy, but the Steelers are used to that by now. In their regular season matchup, the Chiefs got hammered at Heinz Field, losing 43-14. That loss dropped them to 2-2 on the season and the playoffs seemed a far way off.

Kansas City is better now than the team that completely laid an egg in that game. But if the Chiefs can’t contain Le’Veon Bell, nothing else will matter. Bell put up 144 yards on 18 carries against them in the regular season, and he’s coming off a 167-yard, two-touchdown rushing game against the Dolphins.

Ben Roethlisberger has struggled with interceptions in recent weeks. He threw two of them against the Dolphins and had five over the last three games of the regular season. The Steelers know they need to fix the turnovers, but with Bell going full steam ahead, they are capable of winning even those games that are marred with bad turnovers.

As far as experts are concerned, it’s a bit of a mixed bag overall. Over at CBS Sports, their eight experts are fairly decisive, with seven of them picking the Steelers to win. The ESPN panel is split down the middle.

Here at SB Nation, there’s not a consensus either.

That’s five SB Nation experts picking the Steelers and the other three, plus the OddsShark computer, in the corner of the Chiefs.