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Steelers vs Browns Predictions, Picks & Best Odds for Thursday Night Football (Week 12)

Sascha Paruk

By Sascha Paruk in NFL Football

Published:


Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett hands a helmet back to Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones
Nov 19, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) hands a helmet back to Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones (77) during the third quarter at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports
  • The AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers visit the last-place Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night Football in Week 12 (Nov. 21)
  • Pittsburgh can open a two-game lead at the top of the division with a win
  • See the Steelers vs Browns predictions, expert picks, and best available odds for TNF

An AFC North mismatch is on the TNF schedule in Week 12 as the division-leading Pittsburgh Steelers (8-2, 4-1 away, 8-2 ATS) visit the last-place Cleveland Browns (2-8, 1-4 home, 3-7 ATS) at Huntington Bank Field at 8:15 pm ET on Nov. 21. The Steelers, who have won five straight, are 3.5-point favorites over the Browns, who have lost two in a row and seven of their last eight.

Steelers vs Browns Predictions

  • Browns +4.0 (-115) at ESPN Bet
  • Under 37.0 (-110) at DraftKings
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For the past three days, this line has been moving in Cleveland’s favor. The opening Week 12 NFL odds listed Pittsburgh as 5.5-point favorites and -238 on the moneyline. Now the biggest spread is Pittsburgh -4.0 while the vast majority of books have the spread at 3.5. The total has also undergone a massive shift, dropping to 37 (as low as 36.5 at some books) after opening at 40.0.

Any bettor should have pause betting with the public when the line has moved this far, but I still like the Browns to cover and the under.

First of all, history is on your side, especially when it comes to the under; two of the last three games between these teams in Cleveland have failed to hit 30 points: a 13-10 Browns win last year, and a 15-10 Steelers win in 2021.

While Jameis Winston certainly gives the Cleveland offense a higher ceiling than Dorian Thompson-Robinson – as evidenced by Cleveland’s 29-24 win over Baltimore in Week 9 – he’s only led the team to 24 points combined over the last two weeks. Scoring 10 points against the Chargers’ league-best defense is somewhat excusable, but only managing 14 against the porous Saints is not. Of course, some of the blame goes to kicker Dustin Hopkins, who was o-for-2, including shanking a 27-yard gimme wide left.

Now Jameis and company have to face a Pittsburgh defense that sits second on scoring (16.2 PPG) and grades out third overall at PFF.

Winston passed for a whopping 395 yards last week, but the Browns had little semblance of a ground game, which meant most drives stalled on the regular during their 35-14 loss to the Saints.

I’m also expecting a big day out of the Cleveland defense, which is why I’m taking the Browns +4.  The Browns are still rank as a top-ten defense at PFF and has held five of ten opponents to 21 or fewer points.

The Steelers have been better on offense since Russell Wilson took over under center, but still only grade out 19th-best in the league. I don’t see them distancing the Browns in this bitter division rivalry.

Best Steelers vs Browns Odds

Team Spread Moneyline Total
Pittsburgh Steelers -3.5 (-110) at BetMGM -195 at Caesars O 36.5 (-115) at FanDuel
Cleveland Browns +4.0 (-115) at ESPN Bet +166 at FanDuel U 37.0 (-110) at DraftKings

The Steelers/Browns spread is 3.5 at almost all sportsbooks with ESPN Bet being the exception. They have the line bumped up to Pittsburgh -4.

Caesars and ESPN Bet currently have the best price on the Pittsburgh moneyline at -195 while FanDuel has the longest odds on a Cleveland SU victory at +166.

The game total shows a half-point range at the moment FanDuel and ESPN Bet both have the O/U at 36.5 while all other books are at 37.0.

The early NFL public betting splits for TNF show the vast majority of money on Pittsburgh. The Steelers are getting 82% of ATS handle and a staggering 99% of moneyline handle as of 3:30 pm ET on Wednesday afternoon.

Sascha Paruk
Sascha Paruk

Managing Editor

Sascha has been working in the sports-betting industry since 2014, and quickly paired his strong writing skills with a burgeoning knowledge of probability and statistics. He holds an undergraduate degree in linguistics and a Juris Doctor from the University of British Columbia.

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