Here’s our pick for tonight. I’ll have to do the overall record of my picks later on.
Pittsburgh at St. Louis – NFL Network, 8 p.m.
The Steelers have lost two in a row. That’s right. Losers to the Patriots in Week 14 and Jacksonville on Sunday. Now, they’re tied for the division lead with Cleveland, but hold the tiebreaker having swept the season series. If the Steelers had to go to a team with a decent record, I might be a bit more confident picking the home team, but the Rams just like the Steelers have lost their last two games. The key here is the running game for both teams. The Steelers’ Willie Parker leads the NFL in rushing yardage. Stephen Jackson is now healthy for the Rams and is running the ball well. The key here is controlling the ball. If the Rams punch the Steelers in the mouth like Jacksonville did on Thursday, they’ll have a decent shot of the upset. But the one thing the Steelers have is WR Hines Ward and a decent receiving corps. Based on that intangible, I’ll have to take the Steelers. I will gladly take a Rams upset so my Browns can lead the division by a half game going into this Sunday’s action, but I’ll go with my head here and take the Steelers, 23-13.
