Navigate

Miami Dolphins at Pittsburgh Steelers Odds & Game Pick

by |

There isn’t much that has gone right for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first half of the season. However, after upsetting the Los Angeles Chargers on the road in Week 6, they are favored to record back-to-back wins for the first time this season when they host the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football. At 2-4, you might think the Steelers are out of the playoff race but with an expected win this week, they could inch up to 3-4. The No. 6 seed in the AFC is the 4-3 Houston Texans, so the Steelers are not out of it just yet.

Special Offer: Bet $1 and win $100 if Aaron Rodgers throws a TD pass this week >>

Details

  • Opening Line: Pittsburgh -16
  • Current Line: Pittsburgh -14.5 at PointsBet
  • Over/Under: 43
  • Location: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Start Time: 8:20 PM ET
  • Last Meeting: Dolphins 30 vs. Steelers 15 (10/16/16)

View consensus picks from 100+ experts for the Dolphins at Steelers >>

Overview

Mason Rudolph is expected to make his return for Pittsburgh. Before entering the concussion protocol after an ugly hit in a 26-23 overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens, Rudolph had thrown for 646 yards and seven touchdowns with just two interceptions. Rudolph should be able to build on those strong numbers against a league-worst Miami defense that has allowed an average of 35.2 points per game this season.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins’ offense showed signs of life in last week’s loss to Buffalo with 21 points. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 282 yards, a touchdown, and an interception in that loss. He also ran one in for a score. With Fitzpatrick under center and running backs Mark Walton, Kalen Ballage, and Kenyan Drake providing a decent rotation, Miami should – at the very least – be able to keep this game close. However, whether or not they can go into Pittsburgh and win in primetime is a completely different story altogether.

Trends

  • Miami is 1-8 ATS in last 9 MNF games
  • Dolphins are 2-4 ATS this season
  • Steelers are 6-0 on MNF under Mike Tomlin
  • Pittsburgh is 0-5 ATS in last 5 when favored by 10+ points

Bottom Line

After rallying for an important 24-17 win over the Chargers in Week 6, the Steelers will have had an extra week to prepare for this date with the Dolphins. Pittsburgh’s defense is still the strength of this unit, as they have held their last three opponents to a combined average of 15.3 points per game. With the defense performing at a high level and Rudolph back under center, the Steelers should be able to do enough to secure another important win at home.

While Ryan Fitzpatrick looked good last week, that’s the challenge with him. He tends to look good one week and then flop the next. This Steelers’ defense – along with former Dolphins corner Minkah Fitzpatrick – should be very focused for this game. They’ll force a couple of turnovers and find a way to cover.

Prediction: Steelers 24, Dolphins 9

Sign up now at PointsBet and get up to $1,000 back on your first two bets! >>

Check out our other NFL Sports Betting Guides for Week 8

Philadelphia Eagles at Buffalo Bills (-2)
Cincinnati Bengals at Los Angeles Rams (-11.5)
Los Angeles Chargers at Chicago Bears (-4)
New York Jets at Jacksonville Jaguars (-6)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Tennessee Titans (-2.5)
Seattle Seahawks at Atlanta Falcons (+7)
New York Giants at Detroit Lions (-6)
Denver Broncos at Indianapolis Colts (-4.5)
Oakland Raiders at Houston Texans (-6.5)
Arizona Cardinals at New Orleans Saints (-10.5)
Cleveland Browns at New England Patriots (-11)
Carolina Panthers at San Francisco 49ers (-5)
Green Bay Packers at Kansas City Chiefs (+4.5)

Dave Golokhov is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Dave, check out his archive and follow him @davegolokhov.