Steelers vs. Panthers Prediction: It's Christmas Season, but Rudolph isn't the One if Pickett Can't Go
By Josh Yourish
The Pittsburgh Steelers season ended last week against Baltimore when they couldn’t beat a third string quarterback and fell to 5-8, the Carolina Panthers are still in the race for the NFC South at 5-8. The Steelers don’t really have a shot at the postseason anymore and they might not have their starting quarterback, but they can play spoiler to Carolina this week.
Let’s get into the odds for this one and I’ll give you my best bet for Steelers and Panthers in Week 15.
Steelers vs. Panthers Odds, Spread and Total
Steelers vs. Panthers Odds, Spread and Total Movement in NFL Week 15
The Panthers opened as 1 point favorites but are now 3 point favorites over Pittsburgh at home this week.
Steelers vs. Panthers Prediction and Pick
Kenny Pickett has been limited in practice this week after his second concussion of the season knocked him out of the game against Baltimore. If he’s out then it might not be Mitch Trubisky after he threw three picks in relief of Pickett. Instead, there’s a chance that Mason Rudolph will start for the Steelers and that’s bad news. Somehow, there are still Rudolph believers in Pittsburgh, but he’s not a good quarterback. He has no mobility, he has no pocket awareness, and last year he couldn’t even beat the Detroit Lions at home when he got a chance. Rudolph throws a nice deep ball and he gets praised for it, but last season his average depth of target was 6.2. Kenny Pickett’s ADOT is 7.9 this year and he’s been criticized for not pushing the ball down the field.
On the defensive side, Pittsburgh couldn’t stop the run at all last week. The Steelers allowed 215 rushing yards to Baltimore even with a backup and eventually third string QB. So, Sam Darnold and the underrated stable of Carolina running backs will have success this week. Maybe the Steelers will bounce back and I’d like them if Pickett could play, but with Mason Rudolph or Mitch at QB, I love Carolina in this spot.
I’ll never bet against my Steelers, but I would advise all of you to.
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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change