On Sunday, the Steelers vs. Patriots 2017 odds will favor the home team as the two clash in the AFC Championship Game. The winner of this huge matchup at Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts will go on to play on Super Bowl Sunday 2017 for the Lombardi Trophy. For Tom Brady and the Patriots, or Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers, it would be a return to the championship game where each has won before. However, Brady has excelled when it comes to playing in and winning the Super Bowl. Here's a look at the Steelers vs. Patriots game odds including latest point spread, over/under total and trends.
New England is a home favorite
The Patriots didn't play particularly well in their win over Houston in the Divisional Round. However, they still played well enough to win by double digits and cover the point spread. It was a 34-16 win that moved them on to the next round. Gillette Stadium will be rocking once again on Sunday, as the Pats face one of the game's elite quarterbacks in Ben Roethlisberger for the AFC Championship.
As of this report, New England is a six-point favorite at many Sports books on the point spread. Some books may even have the Patriots listed as a touchdown favorite to win at home. That makes the Pittsburgh Steelers underdogs, but there may be some bettors out there willing to take a shot based on their hot winning streak.
Over/under points total
Oddsmakers seem to believe that this NFL Playoffs game will be a slugfest when it comes to scoring. The current over/under is set at 50.5 points for the game. Bettors will have to contemplate if the two teams' combined points for the final score will be over or under that listed total, depending on where they wager.
In their previous matchup, the Patriots won 27-16 over Pittsburgh. However, despite that being a road game at Heinz Field, Ben Roethlisberger was sidelined for it. Landry Jones filled in and did a decent job as his backup, and the Steelers nearly got the win. That said, with Big Ben on the field, it may be a different story and there may be a few more points on the board between these two heavyweight teams.
Patriots and Steelers trends
Coming into the AFC Championship Game, the New England Patriots are 15-2 straight up and 14-3 against the spread over their games so far. That includes both the regular and postseason. 12 of the team's 13 games have been wins with Tom Brady as the starter. He was absent four games at the start of the season due to a suspension for "Deflategate."
The Pittsburgh Steelers are 13-5 straight up and 11-6-1 against the point spread. They won their last seven games of the season, and also a close one on the road at Kansas City last Sunday to advance to the championship round. As mentioned, they fell at home when they previously played the Pats, and that was without Roethlisberger and prior to their hot winning streak.
One of the two teams will now look to snap the other team's hot winning streak en route to another Super Bowl appearance. It's important to consider that the Patriots have failed to win the championship game in three of their last four appearances. In terms of a prediction, one still has to feel good about Tom Brady bouncing back from last weekend's sluggish performance. Look for New England to take this one, 35-28 in a shootout between two of the game's great QBs.
