Sunday's matchup between Pittsburgh and Cleveland is HUGE for several reasons -- one being both teams are fighting for a spot at the top of the AFC North.

The other reason?? It's the first time Garrett will line up against the Steelers since his infamous helmet-swinging attack on backup QB Mason Rudolph in November 2019.

Tomlin was asked if he spoke to his players about avoiding any sort of distractions while meeting with reporters on Tuesday ... and he makes it clear they have bigger things to worry about.

"There really is no message," Tomlin says ... "There's a lot on the table in reference to this game in terms of stakes. They're a 4-1 team."

"We're trying to remain undefeated. We’re not looking for that low hanging fruit or that reality TV storyline and so forth. This is a big game in 2020."

As we previously reported ... Garrett has spoken out about moving on past the incident ... calling it a "small bump in the road."

So ... everyone's gonna get along on Sunday, right??