The Pittsburgh Steelers appear to have the perfect tonic to cure what ails them from a two-game losing streak.
It comes in the form of the two-win Cincinnati Bengals, who will start quarterback Ryan Finley in Monday night’s home game.
The Steelers (11-2) can clinch the AFC North with a win, and they’re 15-point favorites to do so by BetRivers and DraftKings. Pittsburgh is the -1000 moneyline favorite at both books, with 94 percent of the moneyline handle at BetRivers and 95 percent at DraftKings on the Steelers.
Bettors are also backing Pittsburgh with 88 percent of the spread handle at BetRivers and 75 percent at DraftKings.
Pittsburgh is 8-5 against the spread this season but hasn’t covered in its past three games. Meanwhile, Cincinnati (2-10-1) is 6-7 ATS and 1-4 in its past five games.
Both teams have hit the over just once in the past five games. That has led to bettors being split on the over/under, with 54 percent backing the Over at 40.5 at both sportsbooks.
The Steelers won the first matchup of the season 36-10 last month.
That was with Joe Burrow throwing for 213 yards and a touchdown for the Bengals. He went down with a season-ending knee injury the following week and Cincinnati has averaged only 10 points over the past four game.
That includes scoring only seven points in each of the past two weeks. Finley will start Monday night with Brandon Allen recovering from a knee injury.
Finley, 25, has completed 10 of 19 passes for 75 yards with two interceptions in four appearances this season.
Pittsburgh — which scored at least 20 points the first 10 games but has not reached that threshold the past three — also has been hurt by dropped passes, particularly the past three weeks.
“If you’re going to throw the football, you have to catch the football,” Steelers offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner said.
Both teams have had injury problems that have affected consistency — specifically linebackers and offensive linemen for Pittsburgh, the defensive front and offensive line for Cincinnati.
