Pittsburgh Steelers (8-7) at Baltimore Ravens (13-2)
NFL Football: Sunday, December 29, 2019 at 4:25 pm (M&T Bank Stadium)
The Line: Baltimore Ravens +2 -- Over/Under: 37 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens meet in a week 17 AFC North division matchup from M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are in must-win mode after falling to 8-7 on the year with a 16-10 loss to the New York Jets in their last outing. Devlin Hodges started and threw for 84 yards and 2 interceptions on 11 of 17 passing while Mason Rudolph took over and threw for 129 yards and a touchdown on 14 of 20 passing. James Conner led the Steelers with 32 rushing yards while Diontae Johnson led Pittsburgh with 8 grabs for 81 yards and a touchdown. Defensively, T.J. Watt had a fumble recovery and Bud Dupree had a sack with 2.5 tackles for a loss while Mark Barron and Mike Hilton each had a team-high 8 total tackles. As a team, Pittsburgh is averaging 284 yards of total offense and 18.6 points per game while allowing 304.1 yards of total defense and 18.3 points per game against this season.
The Baltimore Ravens will look to carry momentum into the playoffs after an 11th straight win with a 31-15 win over Cleveland last time out. Lamar Jackson threw for 238 yards and 3 touchdowns on 20 of 31 passing while also rushing for a team-high 103 yards. Gus Edwards had 66 rushing yards on 12 carries and Mark Ingram II had 55 rushing yards while Justice Hill had 19 rushing yards and a touchdown. Mark Andrews led the Ravens with 6 catches for 93 yards and 2 touchdowns while Mark Ingram II added 36 receiving yards and a TD. Defensively, Marion Humphrey led the Ravens with an interception while Matthew Judon had 5 solo tackles. As a team, Baltimore is averaging 414.5 yards of total offense and 33.5 points per game while allowing 309.4 yards of total defense and 18.1 points per game against this season.
Pittsburgh is 9-4 ATS in their last 13 games overall and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 division games while the under is 39-12 in their last 51 road games. Baltimore is 8-1 ATS in their last 9 games overall and 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games against a team with a winning record while the over is 5-2 in their last 7 division games. The underdog is 4-0 ATS in the last 4 meetings between these two teams.
Conventional logic would say to side with the Steelers as they’re the only team with anything on the line here as Baltimore’s locked up their home field advantage. However, I just don’t like what I’ve seen so far from the Steelers, and Devlin Hodges isn’t the guy I want leading my team into battle with the team’s playoff lives on the line. Baltimore is resting guys like Lamar Jackson, Mark Ingram II and Marshal Yanda, but the Ravens are still deep and are prepared for this game. Baltimore’s not in an ideal spot for betting in this matchup, but betting on the Steelers with Hodges in such a high-pressure situation isn’t an option for me. I’ll take Baltimore and the points at home here.
Chris’s Pick Baltimore +2
AUTHOR: Chris Ruffolo
Mitch's Take...
