NFL Pick: Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals

Steelers Try to Beat Bengals a Second Time this Season

pmroczka

December 4, 2017

Two AFC North rivals meet tonight in Monday Night Football as the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-2 Overall, 5-1 Away) are at the Cincinnati Bengals (5-6 Overall, 3-2 Home). The Steelers, who are atop the division, will be looking to secure their seventh straight win. The Bengals, who are 3-2 for their last five, will be trying to win a third straight game. Cincinnati is third in the AFC North. When these two teams met on Oct 27 of this year, Pittsburgh won 29-14. Our Pittsburgh plays Cincinnati 2017 Monday Night Football free pick offers the Steelers at -4.0 and an over/under of 43.1.

Pittsburgh Overview

The Pittsburgh offense is scoring on average 23.5 PPG. They may be without dynamic WR Antonio Brown, which could set them back a bit. However, Brown is not definitely out. Still, this team has a sound offense that includes WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (33 REC, 17.2 AVG, 5 TDs) and dual-threat RB Le’Veon Bell who has 61 receptions for 396 yards and 252 carries for 981 yards. Bell has five TDs. Smith-Schuster, like Brown, is questionable. TE Jesse James and WR Martavis Bryant, who together have 55 receptions and five touchdowns, will need to play well tonight. QB Ben Roethlisberger (63.1 COMP%, 20 TDs, 12 INTs) is a major stabilizing force.

The Steeler defense has been tenacious against the run and the pass. They’re allowing just 17.5 PPG. The Pittsburgh defense has 41 TFL and 51 PD. They have made 38 sacks and 12 interceptions. LB Ryan Shazier, who leads the team in tackles with 87, passes defended with 11, and picks with three, is questionable for tonight’s game. DE Cameron Heyward has the most sacks, nine.

Steelers Summary

Roethlisberger is sound and dependable
Top-notch rush attack
Defense can stop big plays

Cincinnati Overview

The Bengals, who are averaging 18.1 PPG, don’t offer much of a ground attack. They do have talented rookie RB Joe Mixon leading the charge, but his O-line is weak. Mixon has rushed for four TDs this season. QB Andy Dalton (62.0 COMP%, 18 TDs, 8 INTs) is having a decent season, but not a stellar one. Two of his top receivers, WR A,J, Green (53 REC, 15.3 AVG, 6 TDs) and TE Tyler Kroft (31 REC, 10.2 AVG, 5 TDs), are questionable.

The Cincinnati defense is keeping teams at 19.5 PPG. That’s a sound stat, but there’s a problem for this team, and it is the injury bug, which has crippled the D this week. Out is their leading tackler, LB Nick Vigil, and one of their stalwart LBs Vincent Rey. Safety Shawn Williams is also out and DE Michael Johnson may not play. The D has posted 33 sacks with LB Carl Lawson leading the way 7.5 and safety Clayton Fejedelem second with seven. Two disappointing stats for this team are in forced fumbles which stand at four and interceptions, which are at seven.

Bengals Summary

Injuries on both sides of the ball are problematic
O-line is weak
Solid pass rush by D

Three Major Takeaways

Here are three points to consider concerning our Pittsburgh plays Cincinnati 2017 Monday Night Football free pick-

Edge on D goes to Steelers
Pittsburgh rush attack tough to stop
Overall, the Steelers are healthier

Our Spread and Totals Picks for Steelers and Bengals

Which way to go with this game? We’re taking what we feel is a fairly sure thing, as our Pittsburgh plays Cincinnati 2017 Monday Night Football free pick is the Steelers at -4.0. We are taking the under at 43.1.