I guess the biggest question ahead of the Week 7 Sunday Night Football contest between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins is who will be playing quarterback. The Dolphins are hopeful Tua Tagovailoa is well enough to return after getting knocked out and missing the last two and a half games. Without him playing to the end the Dolphins have dropped three in a row SU and ATS spoiling a promising start to the campaign. Making his first NFL start Kenny Pickett was knocked out of last week’s game leaving Mitchell Trubisky to take over. Miami is positioned as a 7-point favorite on the NFL betting line to end its slide.
Steelers vs Dolphins Date, Time, How To Watch
The Week 7 Sunday Night Football contest between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins will take place at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, FL at 8:20 p.m. ET on October 23, 2022 and will be televised on NBC.
Date: Sunday, October 23, 2022 at 8:20 pm ET
Location: Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens
How to Watch: NBC
Steelers vs Dolphins Odds
Pittsburgh Steelers +7 ( +252 )
Miami Dolphins -7 ( -310 )
Over/Under 45
Odds Analysis
There’s been some volatility with the spread and total since the numbers first surfaced. A lot of that has to do with personnel, especially when it’s the quarterback. The Dolphins opened as a 6-point favorite and were quickly wagered to -7 when news of Tagovailoa returning surfaced. And it’s easy to see why the betting public is backing Miami. The Fins went 3-0 SU and ATS in their first three games with Tagovailoa starting. He missed half of the Cincinnati game, a 27-15 loss that started the current three-game SU and ATS losing streak. Playng their second straight game as a double-digit dog the Steelers ended a four-game losing streak beating Tampa Bay 20-18 improving to 2-3-1 ATS.
Pittsburgh Steelers
It appears as though times are changing for the Steelers. Playing as a two-touchdown dog two weeks ago in Buffalo they were handed their worst loss in three decades, 38-3. Riding a four-game losing streak they entered last week’s matchup catching 10 points but responded in a way teams with a history of success typically do. They stepped up defensively despite the absence of several key players, thwarting a number of Tampa Bay drives to emerge with a 20-18 victory. We don’t often see the Steelers catching double-figure points and doing it two weeks in a row is nearly unheard of.
With their offensive struggles still in place the Steelers needed a strong game from their stoppers, and they got. Moving forward Pittsburgh will have to defend like they did against Tampa. They held the Bucs without a touchdown until late in the fourth quarter holding them to 28.6 percent on third down and 1 of 4 in the red zone. It might be a lot to ask, especially with T.J. Watt out and Minkah Fitzpatrick, Larry Ogunjobi, Myles Jack and Levi Wallace nursing injuries. Kenny Pickett may be the QB of the future but it’s unknown if he’ll be the guy this week after getting knocked out of last week’s game. Mitchell Trubisky played stellar in relief completing 9 of 12 for 144 yards and the eventual game-winning TD pass. But, the Steelers average just over 200 passing yards with a league-low four touchdown passes.
Miami Dolphins
Tagovailoa is on schedule to return for this contest and the Dolphins couldn’t be happier. It’s obvious what he means to the club following three straight losses in games Tua didn’t finish. And there’s time to turn things back around in their favor. Tua led the NFL in passing yards after three week thanks to his monster game against Baltimore. He threw for 469 yards and six touchdowns helping the Fins overcome a 21-point fourth-quarter deficit. Over those three games Miami averaged almost 28 points while going 3-0 SU and ATS. Over the last three, including the game Tua got hurt, the Dolphins averaged 16 points losing all three SU and ATS.
The offense certainly had issues with Teddy Bridgewater and Skyler Thompson at the helm but the club played well in spurts. The Fins outgained Minnesota by 224 yards with twice as many first downs, but turnovers proved costly. Miami coughed up the football three times with Bridgewater tossing a pair of picks. They’ve also had multiple turnovers in each of the last three games with a total of seven in that span. Overall Miami is next to last in the NFL with a minus-5 turnover differential.
Steelers vs Dolphins Prediction
There are a number of things favoring Miami with the return of Tagovailoa being tops on the list. The club brought in Tyreek Hill to complement Jaylen Waddle and boost the attack. And it’s worked. Hill leads the NFL in receiving yards with Waddle fifth. Also, they’ve been good at home with last week’s setback stopping an eight-game winning streak and 7-1 ATS run.
Prediction: Miami Dolphins -7 and UNDER 45
