A month ago the Bengals were in this same spot that the Steelers are in now, at rock bottom and with no quarterback and off several losses. It seemed like they could never win a game again. Now the Steelers and Tomlin are in the hot seat. Tomlin has stated that they will possibly start Mason Rudolph, their third string QB who hasn’t played in awhile. The good news is that the Steelers are getting healthier and they are ranked 9th in the league in defense. In the last ten seasons, Pittsburgh’s record versus the Bengals is 14-5 SU. Tomlin is 20-6-4 at home in the underdog spot. The Bengals have improved with Browning at QB and in their offense. This is a revenge spot for them as they lost this matchup over a month ago to Pittsburgh. However, the Bengals will be playing this game without WR Ja’Marr Chase and one of their key defensive players in Reader who is out due to injury and this will affect their game. The Bengals defense is still an issue as they rely on their offensive game. Cincinnati has the second worst defense in the league giving up 382.4 yards per game.

The Steelers had the riot act thrown at them this week so expect everyone to participate in this game. If they want to have a chance to win they will have to be all hands on deck and play for Rudolph. They have the talent to stop the rushing attack of the Bengals, forcing Browning to get rid of the ball and they can create turnover opportunities and capitalize on them. They also have the home advantage in this game. This will be the usual tight lower scoring divisional battle especially between these two rivals. Pittsburgh is 3-1 ATS versus division opponents this season. This game is personal for the Steelers and they will be playing for their playoff lives. This is such a buy low spot on Pittsburgh that it can’t be passed up.

Pittsburgh is 8-1 ATS after allowing 30 points or more last game over the last 3 seasons. Pittsburgh is 25-12 ATS after 3 or more consecutive losses against the spread since 1992. The Bengals are 0-4 ATS this season versus division opponents. The Bengals are 0-1 ATS this season and 2-5 ATS in the last three seasons evenging a close loss by 7 points or less to opponent. The Steelers are 3-1 ATS this season versus division opponents. The Steelers are 4-1 ATS this season and 10-5 ATS in the last three seasons after scoring 14 points or less in the last game. The Steelers are 4-0 ATS this season after being outgained by opp by 100 or more total yards last game.

Best bet: take the points with Pittsburgh.