Cleveland Browns vs Pittsburgh Steelers 01/03/2022 NFL Odds and Prediction

The Cleveland Browns visit the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field in the Week 17 edition of Monday Night Football.

Both teams look to stay alive in the playoff hunt after suffering a setback in Week 16. The Browns are coming off a Christmas Day road loss to the Green Bay Packers, 24-22, while the Steelers were clobbered by the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium last Sunday. While the winner of this game keeps its playoff hopes alive, the loser will likely be eliminated from playoff contention.

The Steelers hold the edge in their all-time head-to-head matchup 76-60-1 including a 15-10 road win on October 31, 2021, in their first meeting of the season.

Cleveland Browns

Cleveland gave Green Bay a good fight on Christmas Day despite giving the ball away four times. In fact, the Packers didn’t seal the win until Baker Mayfield threw his fourth pick of the game. They closed the gap to two points with 4:31 left before Mayfield’s final interception. At 7-8, they are in 12th place in the AFC standings but just one game behind Miami for the final playoff spot.

The Browns outgained the Packers 408 to 311 and picked up 28 first downs compared to Green Bay’s 19. They also dominated the possession time, keeping the ball for 31:41 against the Packers’ 28:19. However, as stated earlier, they committed four turnovers that cost them the chance to win the game.

The Browns are 25th in the NFL in passing at 200.7 yards per game. They are the third-best rushing team in the league at 144.9 yards per contest. Cleveland is 19th in the NFL in scoring at 20.9 points per game and they are 17th in scoring defense at 21.9 points per game allowed.

What are the Moneyline Odds?

Browns

+115

Steelers

-135

Odds from BetOnline as of 01/03/2022

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers suffered their fourth loss in their last six games last Sunday and they fell to 7-7-1 on the season and in 11th place in the AFC. Pittsburgh was out of the game early as the Chiefs raced to a 14-0 lead at the end of one, 23-0 advantage at the half, and a 30-0 cushion at the end of three quarters.

The Steelers were outgained 381to 303 in total offense and gave up 25 first downs while picking up only 20. Pittsburgh also lost the battle of possession time 34:42 to 25:18 and turned the ball over thrice without forcing one turnover.

The Steelers rank 14th in passing at 228.9 yards per game this season. They are one of the worst rushing teams in the league this year at 87.6 yards per game, 26th overall. Pittsburgh is 22nd in scoring at 20.1 points per game scored and is 22nd in scoring defense at 24.7 points per game allowed.

Who Wins?

Cleveland is 2-4 SU in their last six games played. The Browns are 1-4 SU in their last five games played on the road. Pittsburgh is also 2-4 SU in their last six games played. The Steelers are 5-0-1 SU in their last six games played on the road.

Baker Mayfield threw four interceptions last week but the Browns rallied and battled back before losing to the Packers 24-22. Cleveland has been hit hard by COVID-19 but they have lost their last two games by a combined four points and their last three games have been decided by a total of 10 points.

Meanwhile, the Steelers looked defeated in a 36-10 blowout loss against the Kansas City Chiefs. Despite that, they still have a shot at the postseason if they can win their last two games. The Steelers have not lost in their last six home games with five wins. This could be the biggest home game in years if it is indeed the last home game of Big Ben’s career.

With Jadeveon Clowney coming off the COVID-19 list, he and Myles Garrett are going to go after Roethlisberger and force him to commit mistakes that the Browns should be able to take advantage of. At this point of the season, Cleveland is the team that looks like it wants it more.

Prediction: Browns +115

Other Bets to Make

Cleveland is 2-4 ATS in their last six games played. The Browns are 3-6 ATS in their last nine games against the AFC, 2-11 ATS in their last 13 games against the AFC North, 20-46-1 ATS in their last 67 games after a straight-up loss, 2-5 ATS in their last seven Monday games, 11-28-1 ATS in their last 40 games against the AFC North, 1-6 ATS in their last seven road games against an opponent with a losing home record, and 0-5 ATS in their last five games after accumulating more than 150 rushing yards in their previous game.

Pittsburgh is 1-4 ATS in their last five Monday games. The Steelers are 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games after allowing more than 350 yards of offense in their previous game, 1-3-1 ATS in their last five Week 17 games, 0-5 ATS in their last five games after allowing more than 250 passing yards in their previous game, 0-6 ATS in their last six games against an opponent with a losing record, 0-4 ATS in their last four home games against an opponent with a losing road record.

Head to head, the underdog is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings.

What are the Spread Odds?

Browns

+2(-110)

Steelers

-2 (-110)

Odds from BetOnline as of 01/03/2022

The Steelers have struggled offensively in their last six games and have lost four of those matchups. They are the worst team in the NFL when it comes to stopping the run and in their last three games, it has been even worse at 190 rushing yards per game allowed.

That will be an issue against Cleveland which ranks third among NFL teams when it comes to rushing. With Kareem Hunt expected to return in this game, the Steelers will have a problem stopping him and Nick Chubb from running the football.

Pittsburgh is going to need Big Ben to step up here but with Cleveland having one of the best pass rush defenses in the league, that will be another problem for the Steelers.

Either way, I look at it, the Browns are coming up on top. I’d gladly take the extra point here.

Prediction: Browns +2

The total has gone under in four out of the last five games played by Cleveland. The under is 5-0 in their last five games against an opponent with a losing record, 5-1 in their last six games played on grass, and 4-1 in their last five after accumulating more than 350 total yards in their previous game.

The total has gone under in four out of the Steelers’ last five games after an ATS loss, 8-2-1 in their last 11 games against an opponent with a losing home record, 8-3 in their last 11 games played on grass, 5-2 in their last seven games after allowing more than 30 points in their previous game, 5-2 in their last seven games after a straight-up loss, 38-16-1 in their last 55 games against an opponent with a losing record, and 35-16 in their last 51 games after allowing more than 250 passing yards in their previous game.

The Browns have seen the under hit in eight of their 15 games played this season and have stayed under the total in four out of their last five. The Steelers have scored 20 or fewer points five times in their last seven games played while the Browns have failed to hit 20 points five times in their last eight games played.

These teams combined for only 25 points during their first meeting of the season last October 31st and there’s no reason why this game will be any different. Both teams rank in the bottom half of the league in scoring so I expect these teams to live up to that here.

Prediction: Under 42

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