Ravens vs. Steelers Prediction
Are the Steelers a safe bet to cover on Christmas Day against the Ravens when the two AFC North rivals clash at 4:30PM ET?
According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetDSI, the Steelers are 6-point home favorites versus the Ravens while the over/under currently sits at 45 points. Both the side and the total have moved off the original numbers posted by oddsmakers, with Pittsburgh moving from -4 to -6, and the total moving from 44.5 up to 45.
BALTIMORE KEY TRENDS: The Ravens are 7-0 against the spread in their last seven divisional games and are 4-1 against the number in their last five conference tilts. They’re also 6-2-1 at the betting window in their last nine road games versus a team with a winning home record, although they’re winless at 0-5 against the spread in their last five road games overall. They’ve also been a poor bet in the month of December, failing to cover in 17 of their last 23 games played in this month.
PITTSBURGH KEY TRENDS: The Steelers are a perfect 5-0 against the spread in their last five games overall, are 13-3 against the number in their last 16 games played in December, and are 4-1-1 at the betting window in their last six divisional games. They’re also 4-0 against the spread in their last four games coming off a win and are 11-4-1 against the number in their last 16 games when playing in Week 16.
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OUR PREDICTION: The Ravens have been great defensively all season but they’ve looked like a different team without cornerback Jimmy Smith. With Smith out with an ankle injury, Baltimore is going to have a difficult time slowing down Antonio Brown. With Shareece Wright across from rookie Tavon Young and Jerraud Powers in the slot, it’s a secondary that Ben Roethlisberger can exploit. Plus, with Roethlisberger now healthy (he wasn’t when the Ravens beat the Steelers in Baltimore earlier this year), and a red-hot Le’Veon Bell, I don’t think the Ravens will keep pace with the Steelers today. This matchup always produces close games, but the Pittsburgh is playing on a different level right now. A higher level than Baltimore, which nearly allowed Philadelphia to pull off a stunning comeback last Sunday.
NFL WEEK 16 PREDICTION: PITTSBURGH STEELERS -6