Pittsburgh Steelers at Indianapolis Colts Betting Preview
Monday Night Football features a couple of struggling AFC teams as the Pittsburgh Steelers (3-7) take on the Indianapolis Colts (4-6-1). The Colts will host this one at Lucas Oil Stadium, with kickoff scheduled for 8:15 pm ET.
Last week, the Steelers lost a shootout to the Cincinnati Bengals, 37-30. In the loss, Kenny Pickett threw for 265 yards and a touchdown. On the ground, Najee Harris did a fair amount of damage as he had 90 yards rushing and two scores.
The Colts also lost a close one last week to the Philadelphia Eagles, 17-16. Matt Ryan threw for 213 yards, but he did not manage a touchdown in the loss. Jonathan Taylor did the most damage rushing for 84 yards and a touchdown.
The Colts are the slight favorites playing at home. They are -144 to win, while the Steelers’ moneyline sits at +122. The spread features Pittsburgh +2.5 (-105), and the over/under for total points is 39.5.
Steelers Look For Pickett and Harris To Lead The Way
Ranking 28th in the league in scoring, averaging 17 points per game (13.2 on the road), the Steelers have certainly had their woes on the offensive side. Still, there have been encouraging signs out of Kenny Pickett and Najee Harris as of late, and they will look to see more improvements Monday as they take on the Colts.
For Pickett, he has thrown for 1,426 yards in seven games played this season. He has three touchdowns and eight interceptions. Still, he has not thrown an interception in the last two weeks and appears to be settling in a bit.
The same improvements could be said for running back Najee Harris. In the last two weeks, he has rushed for a combined 189 yards with two touchdowns. He also added four receptions in last week’s loss.
Defensively, the team has also struggled a bit. They rank 26th overall allowing opponents an average of 24.4 points per game (27.6 on the road).
Colts Playing Better Under Saturday
Interim head coach has been in charge for just two games, but there has already been a slight improvement in the results. At 1-1, the Colts have played better, partially due to veteran Matt Ryan being back under center.
In nine games, Ryan has thrown for 2,443 yards, ten touchdowns, and nine interceptions. Ryan’s favorite targets have been Michael Pittman Jr (678 yards, touchdown) and Pierce Campbell (440 yards, three touchdowns).
On the ground, Jonathan Taylor leads the way. In eight games, he has rushed for 693 yards and three touchdowns. He also has 21 receptions for another 97 yards.
While the offense has been a bit inconsistent, the defense has been solid this season. They currently rank 11th in scoring defense, allowing an average of 20 points per game (17 points at home).
Take Colts To Win And Cover
Looking at the trends, the Steelers are 2-7 in their last nine games. They are undefeated in their last seven games against the Colts, but this is certainly a different Steelers team than years past.
For the Colts, they are 1-4 in their last five games and 1-6 against the spread in their last seven games as the favorite.
The most important trend for Indianapolis, though, might be in scoring. For the Colts, they have scored 17 points or less in every single one of their losses this season. Going against a struggling Steelers’ defense, this is a great opportunity for the Colts’ offense to have some success.
Take Indianapolis -2.5 (-115).
