NFL Week 8 and we will see the Pittsburgh Steelers travel to the west coast to take on the Oakland Raiders. The game has a start time of 4:05 PM (Eastern) and will be televised on Fox. Current odds for the game have Pittsburgh listed as 1 point favorites, while the total sits at 40.
Analysis: The Pittsburgh Steelers are still picking up the pieces after an 0-4 start but appear to be headed in the right direction with wins in the last two contests. After allowing 27.5 points per game while going winless in September, Pittsburgh (2-4) has yielded 22 total in consecutive victories over the New York Jets and Baltimore this month. Shaun Suisham's 42-yard field goal as time expired in last Sunday's 19-16 win over the Ravens was the Steelers' first home victory this season. The Steelers' improved defensive play has been the difference of late. They've allowed one touchdown the last two games, and their four sacks against the Jets and Ravens matched the total from the first four. Pittsburgh hasn't allowed more than 83 yards rushing in each of the last two after yielding an average of 122.8 in September. Ben Roethlisberger went 17-for-23 passing in the win over the Ravens last week and turned in his second straight game with a passer rating above 100, while Le’Veon Bell ran for a season-high 93 yards on nearly five yards per carry. Roethlisberger (198) needs two touchdown passes to reach 200 for his career.
The Raiders are coming off a bye week and are a much better team at home, where they have taken two of their first three games, but the Raiders have also lost their last 10 coming off a bye week, getting outscored 271-139 in those games. Pryor, who has a team-leading 285 rushing yards, went three straight games without an interception, but looks to rebound after he threw three at Kansas City. Plagued by a hamstring injury, McFadden has been limited to 90 yards on 33 attempts in his last three games since gaining 129 on 19 carries during a 19-9 win over Jacksonville on Sept. 15. Oakland's Denarius Moore has 20 receptions for 356 yards and three touchdowns over the last four games. Coach Allen's biggest concern is an offensive line dealing with injuries to center Stefen Wisniewski (knee), tackle Tony Pashos (hip and groin) and Andre Gurode (quad). A makeshift line was mostly responsible for the Chiefs sacking Terrelle Pryor nine times. Defensively, the Raiders have been solid, ranking 13overall, 10th vs the run and 13th in points allowed (22 ppg)
Pick: I like the Steelers in this game. They have won 2 in a row and have don't behind their defense that has allowed just 22 points in the last 2 games. Big Ben is also looking better and has been helped of late by the running game with Bell now healthy. That will help this offensive line for sure. The Raider OL is a mess and dealing with injuries. That should help the Steelers put plenty of pressure on Pryor and force him to some mistakes. The Steelers are the better team here and the Raider are horrible off a bye week (Lost 1 in a row) Look for Pitt to win their 3rd game in a row here.
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