Free Picks: Pittsburgh Steelers vs Baltimore Ravens

The Pittsburgh Steelers continue being the only undefeated team in the NFL and this week get a home date against their bitter rivals, the Baltimore Ravens, whom they beat earlier this season on their home turf.  With home-field advantage in their favour this time around, it’s shaping up to be a season series sweep for the Steel Curtain.  888sport has the Steelers as -4.5 favourites (-110).

It’s crazy to consider that we’re at Week 12 of the 2020 NFL season and that the Pittsburgh Steelers are still undefeated.

The rivalry between the Steelers and the Ravens is as bitter as they come, and the last time they met back in Week 8, the Steelers entered the game as +4.0 underdogs.  They of course ended up winning that game and have since been unstoppable.

The main story this season for Pittsburgh has been their defense and rightfully so.  They made the Jacksonville Jaguars look silly last week as they picked off poor rookie Jake Luton a staggering four times, and he was also sacked twice.

The Steeler’s offense however is a bit overlooked this season though.  They currently rank fourth in points per game at 29.8, behind only Kansas City, Seattle, and Green Bay.

Big Ben Roethlisberger is having a great comeback year as he’s averaging a passer rating of 101.4 and has thrown for 24 touchdowns and just 5 interceptions.  He has one of the best receiver corps in the league featuring the likes of Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, and JuJu Smith-Schuster.  All three of these guys have the potential to score two or three touchdowns any given week.

The Baltimore Ravens, on the other hand, have been shaky as of late and are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Tennessee Titans, who if you recall, also had their number in last year’s playoffs.  Also, the Cleveland Browns have surpassed them in the win column, so they’re currently sitting in third place in the AFC North.

Regression was inevitable after the kind of season Lamar Jackson had last year, and although his strength has always been his ability to run, he has been very underwhelming under center this year and is only completing 63.4% of his passes.

Their defense is still strong, but I would still be surprised if Baltimore beats Pittsburgh this weekend.  This rivalry is so fierce though that you can rest assured that these teams will both bring their A-game.  For that reason alone, I’m taking the OVER in this game (888sport 45.0 -110).

• Pittsburgh is 7-1 ATS in their last 8 games
• The OVER has cashed in 4 of Pittsburgh’s last 6 games against Baltimore
• Baltimore is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games
• Baltimore is 15-5 SU in their last 20 games