NFL bettors know that the Miami Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers are right now in a battle among many teams for the right to be the AFC’s sixth and final playoff team, and so it goes without saying that their encounter will have an impact on the playoff race. They will kick off at 1 PM ET at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, and there will be some additional significance in that Miami’s big free agent signing in the off-season returns to the Steel City.
The Dolphins are 6-6 straight-up and 7-5 against the football pointspread, and they are tied with the Baltimore Ravens for that playoff spot, although Baltimore holds a tie-breaker advantage. The Steelers lost to Baltimore last week, so they are now 5-7 straight-up and tied with Tennessee, San Diego and the New York Jets in the playoff pecking order, all a game back. Pittsburgh is 6-6 against the NFL odds.
In the NFL betting lines that have been placed on this game at BetAnySports, the Steelers are favored at home:
NFL Betting Lines Courtesy Of USA Friendly BetAnySports Sportsbook
Pittsburgh Steelers -3 -115
Miami Dolphins +3 -105
Over 41 Points -110
Under 41 Points -110
Pittsburgh has all kinds of injury problems on its offensive line, as center Fernando Velasco is gone for the year (meaning they are, in effect, down to third-string center), and left tackle Kelvin Beachum is also out. The good news is that Le’Veon Bell, the rookie running back, has gotten the clearance to play. But who is blocking for him? That’s a question pro football bettors certainly have.
Speaking of blocking, that is one thing the Dolphins must do a little more for Ryan Tannehill, who has suffered through some misery from opposing pass rushes, with 45 sacks. Fortunately for him, the Jets only got to him once last week, and he threw for 331 yards. Now he will try to create a connection with Mike Wallace, the wide receiver who came over from Pittsburgh as a free agent. By most standards, Wallace has not been overly productive (56 catches, 743 yards), although he could reach 1000 yards. NFL bettors at BetAnySports know that Miami needs another receiver, like, say, Brian Hartline (62 catches) to take the attention away so that Steelers’ defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau can’t devise something to take Wallace out of the game.
And of course, everybody’s eyes will be on Mike Tomlin, who worked his way onto the field to get in the way of Baltimore return man Jacoby Jones last week and got hit with a $100,000 fine for that antic. After chalking up five wins in seven games, the Steelers just missed at Baltimore. So this becomes the proverbial “must game” for them. For the best in NFL betting, there’s only one place to turn, and that’s BetAnySports!