Steelers must avoid another trap 'revenge' game in Week 14

The Steelers (7-5) fell trap to a "revenge" game in Week 13, losing to the Cardinals (3-10) who saw a dominant 105-yard and two-touchdown performance by RB James Conner. But will they be victim to another "revenge" game in Week 14?

Pittsburgh is hosting the Patriots (2-10) on "Thursday Night Football" and will face another one of its former players in WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, who is looking forward to his return to the Steel City.

"I'm excited. First time going back. It'll be cool to see Mike Tomlin, play against those boys and just get a win," Smith-Schuster said.

The seventh-year wide receiver was drafted by the Steelers in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft, posting 323 catches for 3,855 yards and 26 touchdowns with them from 2017-21.

Following Smith-Schuster's stint with Pittsburgh, he played for the Chiefs, who he won Super Bowl LVII with in 2022, and then signed a three-year, $25.5M contract with New England this offseason.

However, he hasn't lived up to expectations with just 25 receptions for 170 yards and one touchdown on the year. But that could all change this week after seeing Conner have his best performance of the 2023 season against his former team, and he surely wants to prove the Steelers wrong for giving up on him as well.

Pittsburgh has no excuses for losing this matchup, but the same could have been said about its Week 13 tilt with Arizona. WR Diontae Johnson has since shed light on the poor performance by his team.

"When we got out there, it felt like something was different. We wasn't at our best," Johnson told reporters. "I feel like we just took them lightly than we should have. We can't come in this Thursday with the same mindset."

The Steelers better not take the Patriots, who have the same record the Cardinals did last week, lightly, or Smith-Schuster and his new team will be having the last laugh once again.