Cincinnati Bengals vs Pittsburgh Steelers Prediction
| Game Time: | 8:00 PM EST |
| Cincinnati Bengals Line: | -2.5 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers Line: | 2.5 |
| Total: | 48 |
| TV: | ABC |
Are you ready for some football? Here is your Cincinnati Bengals vs Pittsburgh Steelers Prediction. On Saturday 01/04 the Cincinnati Bengals will take on the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The forecast for Saturday is for a temp of 21.6 °F with 13.9 mph wind and 7% chance of rain.
This game features a match-up of two AFC North teams. The AFC North is the #4 ranked conference in the NFL with a 50% Win-Loss percentage as a conference. The 8-8 Bengals are ranked #3 in the AFC North and the 10-6 Steelers are ranked #2.
Last Week’s Re-Cap and Playoff Picture
Last week the Bengals defeated the Broncos 30 to 24 in which they allowed the Broncos to gain a total of 329 yards of offense. The Steelers lost against the Chiefs 10 to 29 while allowing the Chiefs to gain 389 yards of total offense. The Bengals come into this game having played the #32 easiest strength of schedule in the NFL compared to the Steelers who have had the #18 easiest SOS in 2024.
Can Cincinnati Work Their Magic Again This Season?
Skill Position Impact
The Bengals will go with Joe Burrow who has a record of 8-8 as starting quarterback this season. Joe Burrow is ranked #1 for QB’s this week and he has completed 423 passes on 606 attempts and has averaged 290.1 yards per game with a completion percentage of 69.8% with 42 TD’s and 8 INT’s. His QBR is 28.5% above the league average and he has 1 fourth quarter comebacks and 2 game winning drives this season.
The Bengals running back Chase Brown is the #14 ranked RB this week and he is averaging 61.9 yards per game and 4.3 yards per rush attempt while scoring 7 TD’s and having 2 fumbles. He has an advanced rushing success rate of 52.4% which is 2.8% more than the league average for this statistic.
Wide receiver 1 for the Bengals is Ja’Marr Chase who is ranked #1 for WR\TE’s this week. He averages 7.3 receptions per game with a 13.8 yards per catch average to go along with 16 TD’s. When it comes to the advanced receiving stats, he has a catch success rate of 72.7% which is 20.3% above league average and a receiving success rate of 61.5% which is 22.7% more than the league average for wide receivers in this statistical category.
Overall Offense Analysis for the Bengals
The Bengals offense has scored 453 points this season which is 23.9% more than the NFL average and have 20 turnovers which is an average of 1.3 turnovers per game. They are still flying high with those exceptional wide receivers.
Overall Defense Analysis for the Bengals
The defense for Bengals has allowed 417 points in 2024 which is 14.1% more than the NFL average for points allowed while causing 24 turnovers which is an average of 1.5 turnovers per game which is 25% more than the league average. They really just need to keep outsourcing their opponents as the Defense has been their nemesis all season.
Significant Injury Report Updates for the Bengals
Bengals RB Chase Brown is listed as questionable for this week’s game as of 2 days ago. The latest update is Brown (ankle) is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game against the Steelers. WR Tee Higgins is listed as questionable for this week’s game as of 2 days ago. The latest update is Higgins (ankle/knee) is listed as questionable.
Player Props:
- Ja’Marr Chase has recorded 94+ receiving yards in the Bengals last 4 games.
- Joe Burrow has recorded +309 passing yards in his last 3 games vs the Steelers
- Tee Higgins has recorded 115+ receiving yards in his last 3 road games
Can the Field General Pull off the Upset Once Again?
Skill Position Impact
The Steelers will go with Russell Wilson who has a record of 6-4 as starting quarterback this season. Russell Wilson is ranked #22 on the QB Rankings for this week and he has completed 197 passes on 305 attempts and has averaged 233.4 yards per game with a completion percentage of 64.6% with 15 TD’s and 5 INT’s.
The Steelers running back Najee Harris is the #7 ranked RB this week and he is averaging 62.9 yards per game and 4 yards per rush attempt to go along with 5 TD’s and 0 fumbles. He has an advanced rushing success rate of 43.8% which is 14% less than the league average for this statistic.
For the Steelers at wide receiver 1 is George Pickens who is ranked #52 for all WR\TE’s this week in the NFL. He averages 4.5 catches per game and 15.5 yards per reception to go with 3 TD’s and 1 fumble on the season. The advanced receiving stats show he has a catch success rate of 59.8% which is 1.1% below league average.
Overall Offense Analysis for the Steelers
The offense for the Steelers has scored 363 points so far this year which is 0.7% less than the NFL average and they have 16 turnovers on offense for an average of 1 turnover per game. The Steelers have not had the high scoring games as in the past, but they do manage to take care of business by limiting mistakes.
Overall Defense Analysis for the Steelers
The Steelers defense has allowed 328 points so far this year which is 10.3% less than the league average for points allowed while creating 31 turnovers for an average of 1.9 turnovers per game which is 58.3% more than the rest of the league. The Steelers use their blitz game to limit opposing quarterbacks. They should bring the house against Burrow.
Significant Injury Report Updates for the Steelers
The Steelers have no starting skill players on the injury report. But here are others…
- Steelers DT Logan Lee is on Injured Reserve and will not play in this week’s game as of 2 days ago. The latest update is Lee (calf) is out for Saturday’s matchup with the Steelers, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.
- Steelers WR Roman Wilson is on Injured Reserve and will not play in this week’s game as of 2 days ago. The latest update is Wilson (hamstring) has been ruled out for Saturday’s game against the Bengals, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.
- Steelers LB Cole Holcomb is listed as Out for this week’s game as of 2 days ago. The latest update is Holcomb (knee) has been ruled out for Saturday’s game against the Bengals, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.
- Steelers CB Donte Jackson is listed as questionable for this week’s game as of 2 days ago. The latest update is Jackson (back) is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game against the Bengals, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.
Player Props:
- George Pickens has recorded a longest reception of 31+ yards in his last 8 appearances
- Russell Wilson has recorded 205+ passing yards in his last 9 appearances
- Jaylen Warren has recorded 41+ rushing yards in his last 5 home games
Mindy’s Pick: Bengals ML @ -120
The Bengals have won each of their last 4 games and have been in this position to make it into the playoffs, last minute, many times. They have covered against the spread in their last 8 road games, and it looks to be business as usual after playing a close one at home last week. My modeling has the Bengals winning 27-24 but let’s go moneyline since it has been the most successful option all season long.
If you enjoyed this article, make sure you check out this match-up between the Panthers & Falcons Here: https://www.tonyspicks.com/2025/01/04/carolina-panthers-vs-atlanta-falcons-prediction-01-05-25-nfl-pick/
About Mindy:
Mindy has been in the business of picking winners for over 30 years. Her analytical mind has given her the insight to find the edges over Vegas in all the major sports. This is her 4th year at Tony’s Picks and loves to give out her Data Driven Picks. If you love Mindy’s free picks make sure you check out the link to her profile page here, to get her very best picks every day. Mindy has been crushing the books this NFL season and is 38-5 on her Moneyline predictions this year!!! Let’s get some wins!