KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chiefs have been cautiously nursing the surgically repaired left knee of star pass rusher Justin Houston back to health. He should be ready just in time to face Pittsburgh on Sunday.

To which Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger replied: “I think Justin should take his time, think about his health and his family, and take one more week off.”

“Well,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid countered, “Ben’s a smart guy.”

That little tit-for-tat drives home the notion that the ability of the Chiefs to put pressure on Roethlisberger could become a crucial story line of their divisional matchup.

Kansas City didn’t have Houston, a four-time Pro Bowl linebacker, when the Steelers romped to a 43-14 victory in October. Nor have the Chiefs had a whole lot of success from anybody else — ever — when it comes to bringing down the veteran quarterback known as “Big Ben.”

Roethlisberger has been sacked eight times in six games against Kansas City, two of those when their matchup this season was well in hand. It’s a big reason he is 5-1 against the Chiefs.

And while he was hit often early in his career, that hasn’t been the case lately.

Big Ben was bagged 17 times in 14 regular-season games, and the Steelers’ offensive line only gave up 21 sacks total. That was second to Oakland for fewest in the entire league.

“I was the second-least-sacked quarterback in the league this year. The line is playing great,” Roethlisberger said. “I think I’ve absorbed less hits this year, last year and as the years have gone on, so that’s probably helped me feel better than ever.”

Roethlisberger said on a conference call Wednesday that his right foot, which got pinned beneath the Dolphins’ Cameron Wake late in last week’s wild-card win, was going to be fine for Sunday.

Good thing, too, because it appears Houston will be fine as well.

The Chiefs’ top pass rusher had surgery in February to repair a balky ACL and did not play until late November. He proceeded to pile up three sacks against Denver and another the next week in Atlanta, but was quiet the following two weeks. Houston did not play in the final two regular-season games.

Houston also did not practice during an abbreviated workout Monday.