[TomWilkinson]

Pittsburgh Steelers’s quarterback Ben Roethlisberger knows that his team must play a near perfect game on Sunday to upset the Indianapolis Colts.

"This team is an unbelievable football team," Roethlisberger said of the Colts, who won their first 13 games before dropping two of their final three. "They're as good as it gets in the NFL. It's going to take our A-plus game to go out and beat their B-minus game."

"I don't think anybody is picking us to win," Roethlisberger said. "Obviously, they're the best football team in the NFL and we're just the Pittsburgh Steelers. We're going to go in and obviously try to find a way to just put a few points on the board and compete."

"I think it's a really good assessment," All-Pro guard Alan Faneca said of Roethlisberger's remarks. "They've shown all season what they can do offensively and defensively and how well they can do it on both sides of the ball, that it takes a great effort just to play on their level."

The Steelers played poorly earlier this season when they lost 26-7 at the RCA Dome, but they still have confidence they can win, even on the road.

"I'm not saying you're lackadaisical at home, but if that road team comes out and hits you in the mouth almost from the first play, that's a gut check right there," left tackle Marvel Smith said.

Right guard Kendall Simmons said, "When you're on top everybody is gunning for you, we found that out last year. Now we're fighting our way back into the top level. That takes all the focus off us. Nobody is giving us a chance, and I know we're going to take advantage of it."

"We're not going to be able to get behind by so many points and then try to fight back and play well after that," linebacker James Farrior said, referring to last Sunday's comeback from a 10-point deficit in a 31-17 win at Cincinnati. "We need to start off fast and keep it going. When you fall behind this team, it's going to be tough to come back."