Thursday Night Football in Week 7 features a heated AFC North showdown as the Steelers battle the Bengals under the primetime lights.
- For more Thursday Night Football coverage, check out our Steelers vs Bengals preview.
For my top Steelers vs Bengals NFL PrizePicks and Underdog plays, I’m highlighting Aaron Rodgers, Kenneth Gainwell, and Jonnu Smith.
Aaron Rodgers
More Than 0.5 Rushing Yards
We're kicking off our TNF plays with a fun angle backing 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers to record at least one rushing yard.
While Rodgers is not your prototypical scrambler at this point in his career, he has had at least one rush attempt in every game this season.
His minimal rushing has led to him exceeding this mark in four of five games. The Bengals don't generate much pressure, but the Steelers' line is not great at preventing pressure either.
We should see Rodgers dust off his wheels and use them at least once tonight to get us beyond this mark.
Kenneth Gainwell
Less Than 6.5 Rushing Attempts
Staying on the ground here, we are targeting backup running back Kenneth Gainwell. The Steelers have run the ball at the 11th-highest rate in the NFL, but when Jaylen Warren is healthy, he is far and away their lead back.
Gainwell gained some momentum during his spot start in Week 4, when he racked up 19 carries, but when Warren returned last week, we saw Gainwell's total come crashing back down to six. In four games Warren was active, Gainwell averaged just 5.5 carries.
Despite the Steelers likely running the ball more in the second half to drain the clock, expect Warren to be trusted more to ice the game, rather than Gainwell.
Jonnu Smith
More Than 0.5 Touchdowns
Let's give our odds a boost for the final play of our PrizePicks/Underdogs plays with a touchdown scorer.
Aaron Rodgers is favored to have at least two touchdown passes in tonight's matchup, and his third-favorite target on the team is tight end Jonnu Smith.
Now, the Steelers don't throw the ball much in the red zone, but we've already seen Smith catch his lone red-zone target for a score.
Smith figures to be a big part of the Steelers' passing attack tonight, and they'd be foolish not to use his size and athleticism in the red zone.
Back him to find paydirt.
