New England Patriots vs. Pittsburgh Steelers: Game Preview and Prediction
Written by Matthew Regaw
Sat, 29 Oct 2011
Category sportsbook
Feedback Rating - no votes
The NFL game of the week for week 8 has to be the game between the New England Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers. These two teams are AFC juggernauts that can both go to the Super bowl at the end of the season.
The Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski had to deal with some feedback about some pictures that surfaced with him and adult film star Bibi Jones, but that won't distract the Patriots when getting ready to play Pittsburgh.
The opening NFL odds for week 8 listed the Patriots as 2.5 point favorites in this clash. Since then the Patriots have been bet up to three point favorites making the Steelers an intriguing underdog. The Patriots have received 74% of the early betting money heading into the weekend.
Tom Brady and the Patriots have had success against the Steelers in the past. The reason for the Patriots success has been the high-octane offense and spreading out the Pittsburgh defense. The Patriots have so many weapons, it opens up the Steelers defense and keeps them guessing. This prevents the Steelers from presenting a huge pass rush against Brady.
The Patriots enter this game off a bye week and anytime Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has had extra time to prepare for a game, it spells trouble for the opposition. The Patriots defense has been underrated all season, yet they are still doing all the right things to get victories.
After starting week one with a humiliating loss to the Baltimore Ravens, the Steelers have rebounded to put together a successful season. Entering this game, Pittsburgh has won four out of the last five games, but a closer look at those games shows a lackluster schedule. In those five games the Steelers beat the Cardinals, Jaguars, Titans, and Colts. Out of that group the Titans are the only team that had a winning record.
The Steelers are 1-4 against the spread (ATS) in their last 5 games as an underdog and 1-4 ATS in their last five games against the AFC. The Patriots are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 meetings, 6-1 ATS in their last 7 meetings in Pittsburgh, and 15-5-1 ATS in their last 21 games following a game in which they failed to cover the spread.
The Steelers get a heavy dose of Tom Brady and Aaron Hernandez and it will be too much to overcome as the Patriots win and cover the number in this marquee matchup.
NFL week 8 picks: New England Patriots -3