Can the Steelers keep up in the race for the playoffs?

The Steelers have a very important game in Baltimore on Sunday night. Pittsburgh absolutely must win this game to keep their playoff chances alive. With away wins so far this season, a win against the Ravens doesn’t seem that improbable.

But with the hosts losing just two home games this season, betting odds between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers point to another home win.

The form of the last five games is in favour of the underdog. Pittsburgh have won four of their last five games to start a run of form. Baltimore stands at three wins in the same period. It is therefore not surprising that the odds are close between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.

So we can look forward to a very close and exciting game. A few weeks ago, the game between the two teams ended with a score of 16:14 and we can imagine a similar result this coming weekend.

In such a close encounter, you can’t necessarily expect many points and thus touchdowns. The qualities on the offensive side are very limited and therefore many attacks will be nipped in the bud. It is therefore not unlikely that we will see a lot of field goals in this duel.

We therefore recommend betting on over 1.5 field goals by the hosts between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers. John Harbaugh’s team has made eight field goals in the past four games, which means an average of two per game.

Baltimore Ravens – Statistics & current form

The Baltimore Ravens are in fourth place in the AFC and second place in the AFC North. John Harbaugh’s team is already qualified for the NFL playoffs with ten wins. The team can therefore approach the remaining two games relatively relaxed and perhaps even spare one or two players. That’s why Lamar Jackson’s use is still questionable and he will probably only start again on the last day of the game against the Bengals. He didn’t take part in training on Thursday and therefore we expect Huntley to be the substitute.

Problems in the running game without Lamar Jackson

The Ravens don’t have a running back that really stands out and that’s primarily because of the quarterback play. That’s because both Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley often go with the ball themselves. However, the backup Huntley is not a replacement for the starting quarterback and therefore Baltimore scored very few points in the past few games. Running back Kenyan Drake has not been convincing this season and has not been able to make up for the absence of Lamar Jackson. The quarterback is therefore sorely missed. Because Huntley is also only at one touchdown in five games in the passing game.

One of the NFL’s strongest defenses

Baltimore concedes an average of just 18.1 points per game, ranking third in the NFL. Only the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers allow fewer points. Especially against the run game, the Ravens are very solid and allow the opponents an average of only 87.5 rushing yards. Against the passing game, however, John Harbaugh’s team is not as good and is even one of the weaker teams in this category. Still, Baltimore manages to keep the opponent from scoring in the decisive moments.

Key players of the Baltimore Ravens:
QB: Tyler Huntley – RB: Kenyan Drake – TE: Mark Andrews – LB: Patrick Queen – K: Justin Tucker

Pittsburgh Steelers – Statistics & Current Form

The Steelers are only in third place in the AFC North, but still have a chance to make the NFL playoffs. With two spots up for grabs in the AFC, Pittsburgh must win out to have a good chance of making the final day of play. Mike Tomlin’s team has seven wins and eight losses this season. The Steelers will then host the Cleveland Browns on the final day of play. It could be very exciting again.

One of the weakest offenses in the NFL

Pittsburgh averages just 17.6 points per game, which is only better than three other teams in the NFL. Their strength is more in the running game and that’s because of running back Najee Harris, who has scored eight touchdowns. However, he will have a hard time against the Ravens’ strong defence. The Steelers are very weak in the passing game and will therefore probably not be able to exploit the host’s weakness. So there is very little to be said for many points for the visitors in the upcoming game.

The good defence against the running game

Lamar Jackson’s replacement prefers the run game and that’s where Pittsburgh stands very well. The Steelers allow an average of just 105.6 yards, ranking sixth in the league. Against the passing game, the defence doesn’t stand up particularly well. Luckily for them, the Ravens are very weak in the passing game, so don’t expect too many points from the hosts either. We seem to be in for a defensive battle, as we were almost three weeks ago when Baltimore won 16-14.

Key Pittsburgh Steelers players:
QB: Kenny Pickett – RB: Najee Harris – WR: George Pickens – S: Minkah Fitzpatrick – K: Chris Boswell

Baltimore Ravens – Pittsburgh Steelers Head-to-head comparison / H2H record

The Steelers have the lead in the direct comparison. The two teams have already met 57 times and 32 games went to the team from Pittsburgh. However, the Ravens won the last duel. Baltimore ended their four-game losing streak against the Steelers in early December. In the last four meetings between the two teams, no more than 39 points were scored. Thus, between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers, our prediction for a low-scoring game is once again substantiated.

Baltimore Ravens – Pittsburgh Steelers Tip

Looking at the odds before the duel between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers, the bookmakers seem to be assuming a home win. After intensive analysis, however, we see the Steelers with a slight advantage. Pittsburgh is in good form and absolutely has to win this game. Without Lamar Jackson, the Ravens are simply too unthreatening offensively and are also already qualified for the playoffs. For this reason, we expect a very close game and can hardly imagine Baltimore pulling off an outright win here.

We also play another tip-off between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers. The omens clearly point to a low-scoring game. In the past four games of the Ravens never more than 30 points were scored. For the visitors it looked very similar in the past weeks. In addition, the direct comparison between the two teams also points to few points. Therefore, the line of under 37.5 points also seems interesting for a bet.