SPORTS BETTING

• Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Denver Broncos 8:30 ET

  Posted on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT by North Shore Sports, INC

  
  

  Monday Night Football betting action heads to the Mile High City for a crucial AFC tilt between the Denver Broncos (6-1, 6-1 ATS) and the Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2, 2-5 ATS). The winner of this game will gain a slight advantage on one of the top-two seeds in the AFC, which would assure a bye week in the first round of the playoffs.
   
  Should the Steelers lose, they will either fall into a three-way tie for first place in the AFC North, or a game behind Cincinnati depending upon the outcome of the Ravens/Bengals game on Sunday. The Broncos could ultimately only be a game ahead of San Diego by the time this weekend is over.
   
  Bookmaker sportsbook currently has the Steelers listed as 3-point road favorites with a game ‘total’ of 39.5 for tonight’s MNF clash.
   
  Pittsburgh is coming off of its bye week and has had two weeks to prepare for this battle in Denver. Since losing to the Bengals in Week 3, the Steelers have scored at least 27 points in four straight contests. They've won all four games SU, but are only 2-2 ATS in that stretch. QB Ben Roethlisberger is having an MVP-type of season, as he has thrown for 2,062 yards and 11 TDs already in 2009. Big Ben is completing a shade over 70% of his passes.
   
  Defensively, the black and gold are as good as they have ever been. The unit ranks 8th in total defense at 291.0 yards per game and first against the rush at 76.4 yards per game. In its last game against Minnesota, the Pittsburgh 'D' returned two turnovers for touchdowns that sealed up the victory and cover. DB Ryan Clark may ultimately be held out of action with his bout with sickle-cell that almost cost him his life two years ago when the Steelers played in Denver.
   
  The Broncos have made a living out of situations like this in 2009. Every time that someone tells them that they can't, they just continue to thrive and post victory after victory. Ask both Dallas (17-10) and New England (20-17) how much fun it is to come into Denver as a short favorite this year.
   
  The magical 6-0 run both SU and ATS ended last weekend in Baltimore though, as the Ravens handed the Broncos a 30-7 defeat to put a halt to their perfect season. Don't let the final score fool you though, as Denver fought tooth and nail with Baltimore. If not for a kick return for a touchdown to start the second half and a late meaningless score, the final would've been a heck of a lot closer and Broncos' bettors might have stuck inside the 4.5-point spread. Denver ranks #1 in the NFL in total defense at just 266.7 yards per game.
   
  Denver has won four of the L/5 clashes with Pittsburgh SU. The Broncos defeated the Steelers 31-28 at home in their 2007 meeting, while they won 31-20 the last time they invaded Heinz Field in 2006. Denver is just 7-17-1 ATS in its L/25 home games overall, while the Steelers are 8-2 ATS in their L/10 games against teams with a winning record.
   
  Monday Night Football means the last chance for the week to boost your bankroll in the NFL, so login to your Bookmaker.com account and earn some coin today!