Pittsburgh at Cincinnati

Most would not have thought that the Bengals would be the team with the better record entering this game, but that is the case here. The Steel Curtain defense is still strong, but has a lot more holes than a year ago when just five teams reached the 20-point mark on them during the regular season. That count just past the halfway mark has reached four already this season. Andy Dalton has elevated a Bengals’ attack which has now scored 22+ in seven of eight games on the season. To put that in perspective, the Bengals’ attack went for 22+ the same seven times in their previous 25 games. The Bengals are also vastly improved defensively, although they have faced a schedule of teams that are a combined 26-39 on the season, with just two opponents over the .500 mark. So I see quite a bit of scorin gin this game. The Steelers sport a 7-1 mark to the OVER in last eight as road chalk, and despite the defensive label, they are 24-8-1 to the OVER in their last 33 as a favorite of 3 or fewer. The Bengals have eclipsed the total in six of their last eight at home. Under Mike Tomlin, the Steelers are 38-25 OVER as a favorite and 36-23 OVER vs. conference opponents. The OVER is the pick in this one.