Week 14 of the NFL season will once again begin with a clash on Thursday night as the Pittsburgh Steelers will host the New England Patriots. These are two of the most successful franchises in NFL history, but there isn’t a ton of hype or excitement for this matchup.
New England has been one of the worst teams in the league this season as they enter play with a record of 2-10. The Patriots have dropped five straight games, and they could be in line for the number 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Pittsburgh is coming into this game with a record of 7-5, but they have also dropped two of their last three games. The Steelers have some work to do if they want to win the AFC North Division, or even reach the playoffs.
The betting line for this game has the Pittsburgh Steelers as six-point favorites.
Patriots Can’t Score Points
The New England Patriots are coming into Week 14 scoring less than 13 points per game this season. That’s almost hard to do with the way that the NFL games are played today, but New England can’t seem to find a starting quarterback.
Mac Jones struggled to take care of the football this season, and Bailey Zappe just hasn’t been able to hit on any big plays. New England is going to need to run the football well in this game to win, but they are facing a good Steelers defense.
The Patriots have held three straight opponents to 10 points or less, and that defensive effort will be needed in this game. New England does have a path to winning this game, but a lot of things will need to go right.
Steelers Want to Get Stops
The Pittsburgh Steelers are allowing just 19.1 points per game this season, and they have faced some pretty good offensive teams along the way. Pittsburgh has racked up 12 interceptions on defense, and they are going to be coming after the Patriots in this game.
An injury to Kenny Pickett will force Mitch Trubisky back under center for the Steelers in this matchup. Trubisky just hasn’t proven that he can win games at the NFL level, and he doesn’t even really move the ball down the field.
Pittsburgh will feature running back Jaylen Warren a ton in this game, and that might be their best chance for success.
Steelers Get Job Done
The New England Patriots are a team that has been playing some great defense, but at some point they have to find the end zone. That is something that this team just can’t seem to do, and it’s not going to happen against a good Steelers defense.
Look for Pittsburgh to run the football a ton in this game as they will have to move the ball down the field somehow. The Steelers will be trying to take advantage of playing at home, and they should eventually find some holes.
Bet on the Pittsburgh Steelers to not only win this game, but to also cover the six-point spread.
