Steelers, Browns Jostle for Wild Card Positioning
After a disastrous 0-4 start to the season, the Pittsburgh Steelers have climbed back into contention for the playoffs with wins in four of their past six games. Division rivals, the Cleveland Browns, also find themselves at 4-6, and jostling with a cluster of eight teams that are within one game of the final AFC Wildcard spot. The Browns will be trying to bounce back from a 41-20 manhandling at the hands of the Cincinnati Bengals last week, as they find themselves losers of four of their last five, the lone win coming the week before last against the Baltimore Ravens.
Week 12 NFL Wagering Lines Courtesy Of SportsBetting.ag
The Pro Football Betting Lines opened up with The Cleveland Browns laying -2.5 points on The Steelers; the total was listed at 41.5. The Live NFL Wagering Lines courtesy of SportsBetting.ag show that The Browns are laying one point on The Steelers. The Over/Under Bettors are seeing the total currently listed at 40.5.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns Game Overview
Ben Roethlisberger will be looking to build on the best game he’s played all season – a four-touchdown performance last week against Detroit – against a team that he has historically dominated. The Steelers have a glistening 15-1 record against the Browns while they’ve had Roethlisberger under center. “Big Ben” has completed 62.5% of his passes against Cleveland, and has not thrown an INT at FirstEnergy Stadium since 2006. Despite the Steelers’ reputation as a smash mouth team that wins with defense, this year’s version has only recently begun to find in Le’Veon Bell a consistent running game that compliments Big Ben’s big arm. Roethlisburger’s strength in the pocket and improvisational skills when the offensive line gets overwhelmed with the pass rush have the Steelers ranked a surprising third in the NFL with 46 completions of longer than 20 yards.
The Browns will counter Pittsburgh’s big play ability with one of the league’s top defenses. Opponents are averaging a league-low 4.45 yards per play versus the stingy Cleveland defense, while the cornerback combo of Joe Haden and Brian Skrine headline a defensive backfield that has been the best in the NFL at forcing teams to abandon the deep ball. Rather than helping sort the division out, the Browns’ stretch of three straight AFC North opponents has only added to the mayhem over the conference’s final wildcard spot. The Browns will again turn to Jason Campbell for his fourth start in a row at quarterback since having lost Brian Hoyer for the season to an ACL injury. Campbell hopes to replicate the success he last found in his home stadium, the “Dog Pound”, when he threw three touchdowns, no interceptions, and had a rating 116.6 in a 24-18 over the Baltimore Ravens on Nov. 3. Playing on the road has been less favorable for the former Redskins quarterback, as his two starts, both defeats, have resulted in as many interceptions as touchdowns (3), and a quarterback rating of 68.3.
Free Week 12 Pro Football Betting Pick: Pittsburgh Steelers
