New England Patriots at Pittsburgh Steelers, Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, PA
Sunday, November 14, 2010, 8:20 pm EDT, TV: NBC
Opening Line: Steelers -4
Current Line: Steelers -5
Opening Total: 45
Current Total: 45
Money Line: Steelers -220 / Patriots +180
The New England Patriots (6-2) will be on the road for the second straight week against an AFC North opponent when they visit the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2) on Sunday Night Football. The Patriots are coming off a 34-14 loss at Cleveland last week but have lost consecutive games just twice in the last eight seasons under head coach Bill Belichick. Meanwhile, the Steelers (-4.5) will be playing on short rest following a 27-21 victory at Cincinnati on Monday night.
Pittsburgh nearly blew a 27-7 lead in the fourth quarter but stopped the Bengals on their last drive that would have likely won the game had they scored a touchdown. Cincy got off to a rough start by fumbling the opening kickoff and then having a punt blocked on the next possession, allowing the Steelers to score the first 10 points of the game. Pittsburgh can pull a full game ahead of Baltimore for the lead in the AFC North with a win after the Ravens lost at Atlanta on Thursday.
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had a decent game, completing 17 of 27 passes for 163 yards with one touchdown and one interception while wide receiver Antwaan Randle El also connected with Mike Wallace on a 39-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter to give the Steelers their commanding lead. Running back Rashard Mendenhall added 99 yards on 22 carries and scored on a one-yard run in the first quarter to get the scoring started.
New England may have been caught looking ahead to this game last week and has not been the same offensive team since dealing wide receiver Randy Moss to Minnesota. The Patriots are averaging more than 10 points less per game (22) without Moss, who may not have caught a lot of ball but helped stretch the field and opened up passing routes for other receivers like Wes Welker. In fact, Welker has not had more than four catches or 36 yards in the last three games after totaling at least four for 38 yards or more with three touchdowns in the first four games.
The Patriots still have All-Pro quarterback Tom Brady, who has been money against Pittsburgh during his career. Brady is 5-1 as a starter against the Steelers with 11 touchdown passes and three interceptions, advancing to the Super Bowl twice at their expense. Their last loss in the series (33-10) came two years ago at home when Matt Cassel was under center.
New England is 7-2 against the spread in the last nine meetings with the Steelers and was an underdog five times, winning four of those games straight-up. The underdog has covered eight of the last 10 games between the teams dating back to 1997 with the OVER going 6-1 in the last seven meetings.
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