Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cincinnati Bengals: Odds, Analysis, NFL Betting Pick

The Pittsburgh Steelers hold a firm grip on the rivalry with the Cincinnati Bengals as of late, winning eight of the last nine matchups, including the last five in a row, going 7-1-1 against the spread.

Pittsburgh is favored to continue that dominance over Cincinnati on Monday night at Paul Brown Stadium.

             

NFL point spread: The Steelers opened as 6.5-point favorites; the total was 43 early in the week, according to sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark. (Line updates and matchup report)

NFL betting pick, via OddsShark computer: 28.1-15.0 Steelers (NFL picks on every game)

Check out the OddsShark podcast on iTunes or at OddsShark.libsyn.com for more picks and a breakdown of this week's top sports betting news.

              

Why the Steelers can cover the spread

The Steelers just stretched their winning streak to six in a row with a 31-28 win over a game Green Bay outfit Sunday night.

Pittsburgh led early, later trailed, and were ahead again before letting the Packers tie the score at 28-28 in the fourth quarter.

In the end, the Steelers got a beautiful 23-yard Ben Roethlisberger connection with Antonio Brown along the sidelines, which set up Chris Boswell for a game-winning 53-yard field goal at the buzzer.

On the night, Pittsburgh outgained Green Bay 462-307, outrushed the Packers 121-80 and won time of possession by a 34-26 margin. The Steelers have now outgained seven of their last eight opponents and outrushed each of their last six foes.

At 9-2 on the season Pittsburgh—third on the Super Bowl 52 odds at +600—leads 9-2 New England by a tiebreaker in the battle for the best record in the AFC.

               

Why the Bengals can cover the spread

The Bengals own a modest two-game winning streak, after beating Cleveland last week 30-16.

Cincinnati spotted the Browns an early field goal, then scored the next 16 points of the game to take the lead for good. The Bengals later let Cleveland get within one score at 23-16, but they immediately embarked upon a 75-yard drive resulting in a Joe Mixon touchdown that iced the game and the cover as seven-point favorites.

On the day, Cincinnati put up 361 yards of offense, including 152 on the ground, and committed zero turnovers.

The Bengals also committed zero turnovers two weeks ago in their 20-17 victory at Denver.

Even at 5-6, Cincinnati sits just one game behind 6-5 Baltimore in the battle for the second AFC wild-card spot.

              

Smart pick

The Steelers just beat the Bengals five weeks ago 29-14, covering a four-point spread, and there's little reason to believe Sunday's game will play out much differently. Smart money here plays Pittsburgh.

                 

NFL betting trends

The Steelers are 7-1-1 ATS in their last nine games against the Bengals.

The total has gone under in three of the Steelers' last four games against the Bengals.

The Bengals are 2-5 ATS in their last seven games after consecutive ATS wins.

                  

All NFL odds and betting trends courtesy of Bleacher Report's official odds partner, OddsShark. All quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line-movement updates and the OddsShark YouTube page for picks and analysis, or download the free odds tracker app.

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