NFL Picks Week 4: Steelers vs Vikings Picks ATS and Predictions
Vegas is currently favoring the 0-3 Steelers by 2.5
points against the 0-3 Vikings.
By: MaChez, TSZ Expert
This Sunday in London the exciting 0-3 Minnesota Vikings
face off against the equally as exciting 0-3 Steelers in the first game of the
2013 NFL International Series. Not too
surprisingly, the forecast is calling for rain and a high chance of mediocrity.
Now you may be thinking,
“Vikings/Steelers?! Two 0-3 teams? That’s the best early matchup you could come
up with? What about Texans/Seahawks? Bears/Lions? Giants/Chiefs?” All valid questions.
The reality is, with aspirations here to Spread the The
Spread Zone worldwide, how could we pass on this easy opportunity to attract
some readers from across the pond?
That’s right, you better Adam and Eve it. This article breaking down a match-up of two
of the worst teams in football is solely an attempt to bring in more traffic
from the land of monarchs and legal gambling and we‘re not afraid to admit it. Now that we have you here, let’s get down to
some predictions.
Even David Beckham follows American Football and
The Spread Zone!
Minnesota Vikings
After finishing 2012 with a surprise playoff birth, the
Vikings have been a complete disappointment this season, starting it off with
three straight losses. In Week 2 they
lost on a last second TD to the Bears and followed it up last week with a loss
to the pathetic Browns who just happened to be starting a third string quarterback
four days after trading away their #1 running back. Even Adrian Peterson’s bricks and mortar
couldn’t believe it when a late Vikings’ three-and-out led to a game-winning
drive by the Browns.
Adrian Peterson
So my daughter is laying here under me and just out the blue she says... I can't believe you lost to the Browns Daddy! Smh
The Vikings offense has been below average – 22nd
in yards/play, 2nd in turnovers, 20th in net yards/pass
attempt - you get the picture. As usual,
Christian Ponder’s play has been less than inspiring and WR Greg Jennings has
grown surprisingly quiet after putting up only 160 yards and no touchdowns over
three weeks. Even Adrian Peterson has
played below par: Not counting his
78-yard first run of the season he has ran for 203 yards this season, good for
only 2.6 yards per carry.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Often considered a perennial elite team, the Steelers missed
the playoffs last year and are into a right two and eight after only winning
twice during their last ten games.
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and offensive coordinator Todd Haley’s
relationship is now officially labeled “It’s Complicated” and the Steelers face
a must-win situation this week with wins for both the Bengals and Ravens likely
in store for this weekend. Falling to
0-4 would basically be a season-killer.
The Pittsburgh offensive line will have their hands full
against a dangerous defensive front that includes Jared Allen, and missing star
center Maurkice Pouncey will only make things harder on 2nd year
tackle Mike Adams. Fortunately for the
Steelers they have rookie RB Le’Veon Bell returning from injury and actually
had some sort of offense against the Bears last week when they put up 23
points.
The Spread
The line for this game opened even but has since moved to
-2.5 in favor of the Steelers with the total sitting around 43.5. Helping push the line towards Pittsburgh is a
raspberry rippling rib injury to Christian Ponder that might force Matt Cassel
to start the game. Many Minnesota fans would
argue that this actually helps the Vikings but we won‘t get in to that.
Whoever ends up starting, they will have their hands full
against a defense that ranks 5th overall and 3rd against
the pass. Safety Troy Polamalu will
cause fits for game manager Ponder/Cassel, and the weight of the offense will,
like it always does, fall on the shoulders of Adrian Peterson.
Unfortunately for AP, the Steelers biggest problem, their
offense, which totaled only 19 points during the first two weeks, finally
clicked last week when they put up 400 yards and 2 TDs against one of the better
defenses in the league. With two of the
Vikings starting defensive backs hampered by injuries and the Steelers
desperate for a win, expect Big Ben to put up big numbers in London
(naturally). The smart bread is on the
Steelers and the OVER.
Prediction: Pittsburgh
Steelers (-2.5) over Minnesota Vikings
OVER 42
TSZ Expert Picks: 5-1 Steelers
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