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Pittsburgh Steelers vs Minnesota Vikings Prediction, 12/9/2021 NFL Picks, Best Bets & Odds Week 14

by Tony Sink - 12/7/2021

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Game: Pittsburgh Steelers vs Minnesota Vikings

Date: Thursday, December 9, 2021

Location: U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, MN

TV: FOX/NFLN

Odds/Point Spread: Vikings (-3)

Total/Over-Under: 44.5

U.S. Bank Stadium is the location where the Minnesota Vikings (5-7) will try to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-5-1) on Thursday. Pittsburgh is 3-point dogs from oddsmakers. The total is set at 44.5.

The Pittsburgh Steelers head into this game 6-5-1 for this season. In their last contest, the Steelers played the Ravens and walked away with a win by a score of 20-19. Ben Roethlisberger finished 21/31 with 236 yards passing and 2 touchdowns. He had a quarterback rate of 111.8 and ended the contest with no picks. Diontae Johnson averaged 13.1 yds per catch by notching 105 yards on 8 receptions. Najee Harris was the best rusher for the Steelers with 21 carries for 71 yards (3.4 yds per carry). Once the final whistle blew, they had 57 plays which totaled 321 yards. The Pittsburgh Steelers rushed the ball a total of 25 different times and recorded 85 yards, which came out to an average of 3.4 yds per attempt. When it came to the battle of the line of scrimmage, the Steelers gave up 107 yards on 25 tries, which is 4.3 yards per run surrendered. Pittsburgh allowed 23 pass completions on 37 tries for 219 yards, and a completion percentage of 62.2%.

In terms of scoring points, the Pittsburgh Steelers are averaging 20.3 PPG. As a team they maintain an average of 86.9 yards in the run game which is 29th in the league. The Steelers have earned 3,902 total yards this season. Pittsburgh has accounted for 149 first downs offensively, and they have been called for 75 penalties for 582 yards. They have surrendered the ball 14 times (7 picks and 7 fumbles). When it comes to distribution of touchdowns, Pittsburgh has earned 17 passing touchdowns and 7 touchdowns on the ground.

Regarding passing yardage, the Steelers have allowed 2,798 yards which has them sitting in 12th in the league. They have given up 233.2 yards per outing through the air and allowed a completion percentage of 65.8%. Overall, they are giving up 364.1 yards/game which ranks them 22nd in the NFL. They have surrendered 17 touchdowns by air as well as 12 touchdowns on the ground. Opposing teams are running for an average of 4.8 yards per rushing attempt and 130.9 rushing yards per contest this season. Overall, they have given up 1,571 running yards through 12 games. The Steelers are ranked 21st in the National Football League regarding team defense, conceding 23.8 points per game.

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The Vikings come into this game with a record of 5-7 this season. When they last played, the Vikings took a defeat with a final score of 29-27 when they faced the Lions. Kirk Cousins (2 touchdowns) finished the contest with 340 yards on 30/40 through the air while his quarterback rating was 116.7. He kept the ball away from the defense with no interceptions and his Y/A was 8.5 yds. Alexander Mattison ran the football 22 times for 90 yards, finishing the contest with 4.1 yds per carry for Minnesota. Justin Jefferson was one of the featured targets for the Vikings, bringing in 11 footballs for 182 yds (16.5 yds per reception). Minnesota rushed the football for 3.7 yds per carry, finishing with 100 yds on 27 attempts. The Vikings finished the contest with a total of 426 yds and they ran 71 plays (6.0 yards per play). The Vikings secondary gave up a completion percentage of 61.0%, surrendering 272 yds on 25 out of 41 passing. Minnesota surrendered 27 running attempts for 100 yards (3.7 yards per rush).

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The Minnesota Vikings are averaging 384.9 yards/game ranking them 6th out of all teams in the league. They average 113.3 yards per game via the rush and have rushed for 1,359 yards for the season. The Minnesota offense has 797 penalty yards on 84 infractions, which has them sitting 6th in football in terms of making mistakes. They have thrown 3 picks while conceding 6 fumbles and they have been able to earn 159 1st downs. During this campaign to this point, the Vikings have thrown for a total of 3,260 yards via the pass in addition to an average of 271.7 passing yards per contest, which has them sitting 7th in the NFL. When discussing their ability to score points, the Vikings are sitting 11th out of all teams in the NFL averaging 25.7 PPG.

The Vikings are relinquishing 25.4 PPG, which has them ranked 25th in the league. Minnesota has allowed a total of 1,578 rushing yards (131.5 yards per contest) as well as 11 touchdowns via the rush this season. They have allowed 21 touchdowns through the air in addition to 250.5 yards per outing, which puts them in 23rd in the NFL. The Vikings defense taken the field for 789 plays, which ranks 23rd in the league. In total, they have allowed 305 total points. They have totaled 15 takeaways (5 fumbles and 10 picks) over the course of the season.

Who will win tonight's Steelers/Vikings NFL game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take the Steelers +3

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