The final Monday Night Football game of the 2021-2022 regular season will feature one of the best rivalries in sports. The Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers will face off in a huge AFC North matchup.
Entering Week 17, both the Steelers and the Browns are still alive in the division hunt, but need wins to keep their season alive. With a loss, they would be eliminated from playoff contention altogether, and it would render their Week 18 divisional matchups meaningless.
So, who should you bet on in this AFC North battle in Pittsburgh? Let’s dive into our Week 17 preview and the best bets for this Monday Night Football matchup.
Please note that all NFL Week 17 MNF odds and lines are current as of 12 p.m. EST on Monday, January 3.
Monday Night Football Prediction Week 17
The biggest storyline of this game is that this is likely Ben Roethlisberger‘s last home game with the Pittsburgh Steelers (unless they win the division). Roethlisberger has traditionally dominated the Browns throughout his career, but his play has declined in a major way over the last few weeks.
In the last two weeks, he has a passer rating of just 76.5 and is averaging only 5.12 yards per attempt. He’s been awful and the offense for the Steelers has been among the worst in the NFL.
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Meanwhile, the Browns have lost two straight games as they continue to battle a COVID-19 outbreak. They are less likely to make the playoffs than the Steelers, but two-straight wins to finish the season (plus losses by the Ravens and Bengals) would allow them to win the division.
However, this is one of the most injury-plagued teams in the NFL, and it’s fair to wonder if they will be able to battle back in this matchup.
Considering this is likely a “farewell" game for Roethlisberger, look for him to turn back the clock and for the offense to be a bit more productive. It’s not going to be pretty, but take the Steelers here in a close game on Monday night.
NFL Week 17 MNF Prediction: Steelers 21, Browns 17
Can the Cleveland Browns avenge their Week 8 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night Football in Week 17? (Image: USA TODAY Sports)
Monday Night Football Best Bets Week 17
MNF Best Bet: Steelers -3 (-110) at TwinSpires
Wager: 1 Unit
The Steelers have played well at Heinz Field lately, going 5-0-1 over their last six games there. The Browns, meanwhile, are just 2-5 on the road this year.
Mike Tomlin also has one of the best records in the NFL in primetime, which makes this an even better bet. After an awful showing in Kansas City last week, he’s going to have his team fired up and ready to play in their biggest game of the season.
The Steelers should be able to beat the reeling Browns at home by at least a field goal, making this our NFL bet of the day.
MNF Best Bet: Under 43.5 Total Points (-114) at TwinSpires
Wager: 1 Unit
I’m not sure how you can trust either offense at this point in the season. Baker Mayfield is coming off a four-interception day against the Packers and it could have been even worse.
And yet, you can make a case that Roethlisberger was the lesser QB in Week 16 as he had a QBR of only 15.4 (Mayfield was at 35.5). It’s going to be really hard to trust the passing offense for either team, which should keep the score down.
- Read our NFL Week 17 MNF Prop Bets
Look for both teams to try to establish the run and lean on their defense to win this game, hence the relatively low total on our NFL gameday odds. The first team to score 20 points will likely come out on top.
Take the Under here and enjoy the final Monday Night Football game of the year!
Thanks for reading our NFL Week 17 MNF Predictions! For more NFL betting tips, check out our NFL pick of the day.
