NFL Football
2010-11-28 - Pittsburgh Steelers at Buffalo Bills
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
Football : United States : NFL : Week 12
Sunday 28 November 2010 - Kickoff 1pm ET
6pm (British Standard Time)
Buffalo Bills (2-8)
The Buffalo Bills were perhaps a little worried that they might not win a game at all this season after losing so many close ones early on. However, the team never gave up on the season and have been rewarded with back to back wins.
Buffalo rallied from a huge hole last week in Cincinnati to put up 35 unanswered points and beat the Bengals by 12 points. Ryan Fitzpatrick has been doing a stellar job at Qb, throwing 18 TD passes in just 8 games this season and has garnered some particular chemistry with Steve Johnson. They are only 2nd in the NFL in QB-WR passing TD combinations with 9 already this season.
This game presents the Bills with a chance to win 3 in a row for the first time since the opening of the 2008 season. Buffalo will need to improve on their Rushing Defense which has allowed a NFL worst 163 yards on the ground. However, they have improved to limiting teams to 104 yards in their past 3 games after 5 consecutive teams broke 200 yards.
Chan Gailey is going up against the team he was an Offensive Co-Ordinator at for 3 seasons between 1994 and 1997.
Pittsburgh Steelers (7-3)
The Pittsburgh Steelers are still 2nd in the AFC North but will look for a strong finish to gain as good a position as is possible. The Steelers have stumbled a little in recent weeks and have not been the dominating team that many had them pegged as, but an improved performance against the Oakland Raiders may have restored confidence.
Pittsburgh had lost 3 games to teams last season that had entered the game with a 6-26 record combined and this alone should keep the Steelers more than focused. They needed 35 consecutive points to put the Raiders away last week, overcoming a 3-0 deficit and 163 yards of penalties to do so.
The Defense also looked more alive than it did when being beaten all over the place by New England 2 weeks ago. The Steelers have allowed 268 yards through the air during a recent 5 game period before meeting the Oakland Raiders. However, last week they had 6 Sacks, 3 Turnovers and an Interception returned for 6 points taken away by a harsh penalty.
Rashard Mendenhall is looking for a breakout game as he has failed to reach 100 yards on the ground since Week 3.
Head to Head
The two teams last met in 2007, with the Steelers winning easily at home. The last time they played in Buffalo was 2005, the Steelers again winning but in a closer contest by 5 points.
The Bills are 4-13-1 against the spread in their last 18 home games.
Pittsburgh are 3-2 against the spread on the road this season, while Buffalo are 1-3-1 at home.
Prediction
Buffalo have impressed me with their ability to keep themselves in games this season, but they are going to have a harder time to overcome the kind of start they made last week against Cincinnati as they would against the Steelers here.
Pittsburgh's Defense has been awesome in most cases this season, and I expect them to give Fitzpatrick a harder time than he has had for the most part.
I see this game being close for a while, but I will expect the Steelers to pull away in the 2nd half and secure the win minus the points.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Buffalo Bills 17-27 Pittsburgh Steelers
