Football Footnotes: Ravens, Bills, Jaguars insiders give predictions, insight on Steelers’ potential playoff path
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For the 9-7 Pittsburgh Steelers to qualify for the playoffs, the most direct path is to beat the 13-3 Baltimore Ravens on Saturday, then have the Jacksonville Jaguars (9-7) lose/tie in Tennessee (5-11) on Sunday afternoon or the Buffalo Bills (10-6) lose in Miami (11-5) on Sunday night.
There are other, more complex ways the Steelers can get in as well.
No. PIT gets 7 seed with:
⁰ 1) PIT win + IND-HOU tie
2) PIT win + BUF loss
3) PIT win + JAX loss/tie
4) PIT tie + IND-HOU do not tie + JAX loss
5) (even w PIT loss) IND- HOU do not tie + JAX loss + DEN win https://t.co/JELr4jmdPi— Joe Ferreira (@JoeNFL) January 1, 2024
According to BetRivers.com, the Steelers are four-point favorites in Baltimore as the Ravens are resting numerous players (including MVP candidate quarterback Lamar Jackson), as they have already secured the top seed in the AFC playoff bracket.
Game statuses for Ravens-Steelers: 6 Ravens are out and one is doubtful pic.twitter.com/L31jYVyGew
— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) January 4, 2024
The Titans are 3.5-point underdogs to the Jags at home. The Bills are 2.5-point road favorites against the injury-ravaged Dolphins.
• Without the spread, a straight Steelers-Titans moneyline parlay pays out at plus-290. That’s betting $100 to win $290.
• A straight Steelers-Dolphins moneyline parlay pays out at plus-145 ($100 to win $145).
• A straight Steelers-Dolphins-Titans parlay pays out at plus-536. If that were to happen, not only would the Steelers get into the playoffs, they’d qualify as the No. 6 seed.
Frankly, I’m surprised the lines in Miami and Tennessee are as tight as they are. I think Jacksonville (1 p.m. Sunday) and Buffalo (8:20 p.m. Sunday) both win on the road and spoil the Steelers’ postseason hopes after Mason Rudolph and company scratch out a close win in Baltimore against the Ravens backups (4:30 p.m. Saturday).
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But if you don’t want to believe me, that’s fine. For the “
Here are their opinions.
Jeremy Conn (105.7 The Fan, Baltimore)
• On the weather for Saturday in Baltimore and a prediction: “They’re expecting it could be a hot mess of rain, sleet to snow, depending on how cold it gets here Saturday. I think we’re going to have a pretty ugly game. That can be the great equalizer in anything. I’m wondering if that could change the (over/under) total (35 points). But I still like the Steelers to come in, get a win, and cover that spread (minus-4). The Ravens are more concerned about getting these guys in (to the playoffs) and making sure no one gets hurt and not limping into the playoffs.”
• On Tyler Huntley replacing Jackson at QB: “People here always thought that Huntley was a fairly good passer if he is able to read the defense. He does have some wheels. He can take off at any given moment and give you some grief on the ground. It’s not quite Lamar, but it’s still pretty good and probably better than most of the league. So they’re very similar quarterbacks. You just don’t get the wow factor (as) with Lamar. … (Huntley’s) a solid backup but nothing more. He’s very capable of just going down the field with that offense. The running game has been decent. But beating the Steelers this weekend, I think, it’s easier said than done. The Steelers are really playing for something serious.”
• On the Ravens’ motivation level: “I think the Ravens would love to be a spoiler, but I don’t even think they’re really considering that. I think they just want to keep everything going (in the postseason) the way it has been since they’ve come back from the bye week (with four straight wins).”
Sal Capaccio (550 WGR Buffalo)
• On the chances of the Steelers winning while Buffalo and/or Jacksonville lose: “The one I would be least confident in is probably the Dolphins beating the Bills. I don’t say that from a Buffalo perspective. I say that from just the matchup. The Bills have owned the Dolphins over the last several years, especially since Josh Allen came in. They beat the heck out of them in Week 4 — the week after the Dolphins scored 70 points. The Bills won 48-20, and the Dolphins are decimated with injuries right now. Bradley Chubb is now gone. There’s no Jaelan Phillips. In this game, no Xavien Howard. Jaylen Waddell is probably going to be out. Raheem Mostert didn’t practice again (Thursday). And here come the Bills, who are pretty healthy, actually, considering what they went through early in the season.
“And the Bills have to win. Their backs are against the wall. Miami does not have to win this game. They’re in the playoffs, no matter what. This is for the AFC East title. It’s for the 2-seed for both teams. Yes, that means a lot. But I think there’s extra juice for the Bills because Miami can actually say, ‘Look, we just don’t want to push it with some of these guys.’ The Bills have to, basically, go to the wall.”
• What would it take for Miami to pull off the upset?: “Big plays. That’s what the Dolphins specialize in. The Bills typically don’t give up a lot of big plays. But the Dolphins can do it. All it takes is Tyreek Hill to get behind you a couple of times. All it takes is De’Von Achane to bust off a 70-yard run. It is big plays.”
• What would it take for the Bills to screw it up?: “On the Bills’ side, holding on to the ball. Josh Allen has a lot of turnovers. It’s the Josh Allen experience. You have to deal with those if you’re going to get the great Josh Allen. He has thrown an interception in all but (three) games this year. But he hasn’t thrown multiple picks since they changed offensive coordinators back after the Denver Broncos Monday night game in October. So I think that’s a big deal too. If they could just hold on to the ball and not give Tua (Tagovailoa) and that offense any extra opportunities, they wouldn’t be susceptible (to lose). If the Bills give them extra opportunities, that’s not a good recipe.”
Jamal St. Cyr (News4Jax in Jacksonville)
• Is Jacksonville QB Trevor Lawrence going to be able to play?: “(Thursday was)
• If Lawrence can’t play, can backup C.J. Beathard win again like last week?: “C.J. is fine. I mean, he’s nothing special. He’s nothing spectacular. That was just his third career victory. They simplified the game (versus Carolina). They made it very simple. Run the ball. They’ll take the field goals. Take the three points. They felt like that was going to be enough for them to get the win, and ultimately, it was (26-0).”
• What’s Jacksonville’s biggest concern with Tennessee?: “One thing that I would say could break this Jacksonville team is the guy that has broken them in the past. That’s (running back) Derrick Henry. He hasn’t been having the huge Derrick Henry-like days that we’ve seen from him in the past. But he’s a guy that has broken the hearts of the Jaguars year in and year out (1,411 career yards against, career-high 15 touchdowns). He’s from the Jacksonville area. He loves nothing better than to rub it in their face that he plays for the rival team. He’s the guy that I’d be the most worried about.”
Listen: Jamal St. Cyr (Jacksonville), Sal Capaccio (Buffalo) and Jeremy Conn (Baltimore) share their info about the teams standing between the Steelers and the playoffs.