NFL capsules

Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers host the Ravens in an AFC North battle at 7:30 tonight on NBC.
Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers host the Ravens in an AFC North battle at 7:30 tonight on NBC.

Bears at Bengals

Noon

LINE — Bengals by 6½

SERIES — Bengals lead 6-4; Bears beat Bengals 24-21, Sept. 8, 2013

ON OFFENSE

(RK) BEARS VS. BENGALS (RK)

(12) 115.5 RUSH 80.2 (30)

(32) 160.2 PASS 200.7 (26)

(32) 275.7 YARDS 280.9 (31)

(30) 15.9 POINTS 18.2 (24)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) BEARS VS. BENGALS (RK)

(15) 112.2 RUSH 123.8 (28)

(12) 221.0 PASS 210.3 (8)

(14) 333.2 YARDS 334.1 (16)

(14) 22.2 POINTS 19.8 (10) KEY MATCHUP Bears Coach John Fox vs. all-time franchise futility: Fox is 12-32 as the Bears’ head coach and is unlikely to come back for a fourth season. His .273 winning percentage is slightly worse than Abe Gibron’s franchise low .274 (11-30-1 from 1972-1974).

Cowboys at Giants

Noon, Fox

LINE — Cowboys by 3½

SERIES — Cowboys lead 63-46-2; Cowboys beat Giants 19-3, Sept. 10, 2017

ON OFFENSE

(RK) COWBOYS VS. GIANTS (RK)

(4) 138.8 RUSH 89.1 (27)

(29) 189.9 PASS 204.2 (22)

(18) 328.7 YARDS 293.3 (28)

(10) 23.8 POINTS 15.8 (31)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) COWBOYS VS. GIANTS (RK)

(12) 107.8 RUSH 130.7 (32)

(21) 234.8 PASS 260.2 (30)

(21) 342.6 YARDS 390.9 (32)

(20) 23.7 POINTS 24.2 (23) KEY MATCHUP Giants’ TE Evan Engram vs. Cowboys’ defense: The rookie is the Giants’ only true weapon in the passing game after injuries decimated the receivers. He has 5 TDs in the past 7 games.

Lions at Buccaneers

Noon

LINE — OFF

SERIES — Lions lead 30-27; Lions beat Buccaneers 34-17, Dec. 7, 2014

ON OFFENSE

(RK) LIONS VS. BUCS (RK)

(31) 78.2 RUSH 88.1 (28)

(6) 258.8 PASS 261.6 (5)

(15) 337.0 YARDS 349.7 (13)

(5) 26.2 POINTS 20.2 (22)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) LIONS VS. BUCS (RK)

(19) 114.9 RUSH 118.2 (23)

(27) 245.3 PASS 267.3 (31)

(26) 360.2 YARDS 385.5 (31)

(26) 25.7 POINTS 24.0 (21) KEY MATCHUP Lions CB Darius Slay vs. Buccaneers WR Mike Evans: Slay is tied for the NFC lead with 15 pass breakups. Evans has 53 catches for 735 yards and 4 TDs in what can be considered an off year for the playmaker. Expect the two to match up often.

Packers at Browns

Noon

LINE — Packers by 3

SERIES — Packers lead 12-7; Packers beat Browns 31-13, Oct. 20, 2013

ON OFFENSE

(RK) PACKERS VS. BROWNS (RK)

(16) 108.6 RUSH 105.8 (19)

(27) 197.3 PASS 202.8 (23)

(25) 305.9 YARDS 308.6 (24)

(20) 21.5 POINTS 14.7 (32)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) PACKERS VS. BROWNS (RK)

(14) 111.9 RUSH 96.9 (6)

(26) 242.9 PASS 230.3 (17)

(24) 354.8 YARDS 327.2 (10)

(17) 23.4 POINTS 25.7 (26) KEY MATCHUP Packers RB Jamaal Williams vs. Browns’ run defense: Williams gained 113 yards and 1 TD on 21 carries last week to pick up the slack for QB Brett Hundley’s 84 passing yards. The Browns rank 6th against the run.

Colts at Bills

Noon

LINE — OFF

SERIES — Bills lead 36-31; Bills beat Colts 27-14, Sept. 13, 2015

ON OFFENSE

(RK) COLTS VS. BILLS (RK)

(24) 99.1 RUSH 122.0 (8)

(28) 196.9 PASS 174.4 (30)

(27) 296.0 YARDS 296.4 (26)

(28) 17.1 POINTS 18.9 (23)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) COLTS VS. BILLS (RK)

(13) 108.4 RUSH 120.4 (25)

(32) 271.6 PASS 241.2 (24)

(29) 380.0 YARDS 361.6 (27)

(32) 27.5 POINTS 23.6 (19) KEY MATCHUP Colts RB Frank Gore vs. Bills RB LeSean McCoy: Gore (13,697 yards) and McCoy (9,805) are two of the three top active rushers in the NFL. The one who runs better could tip the scale toward his team.

Vikings at Panthers

Noon

LINE — Vikings by 3½

SERIES — Vikings lead 8-5; Vikings beat Panthers 22-10, Sept. 25, 2016

ON OFFENSE

(RK) VIKINGS VS. PANTHERS (RK)

(6) 122.8 RUSH 127.8 (5)

(13) 247.6 PASS 200.9 (25)

(5) 370.4 YARDS 328.7 (18)

(11) 23.8 POINTS 22.4 (16)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) VIKINGS VS. PANTHERS (RK)

(2) 77.7 RUSH 88.6 (4)

(10) 211.4 PASS 209.0 (7)

(2) 289.1 YARDS 297.6 (6)

(2) 17.0 POINTS 19.8 (10) KEY MATCHUP Vikings DE Everson Griff-en vs. Panthers’ offensive line: Griffen has 12 sacks this season, and last year he racked up 3 against the Panthers. The Panthers must slow him down.

Raiders at Chiefs

Noon, CBS

LINE — Chiefs by 4

SERIES — Chiefs lead 62-53-2; Raiders beat Chiefs 31-30, Oct. 19, 2017

ON OFFENSE

(RK) RAIDERS VS. CHIEFS (RK)

(25) 93.3 RUSH 112.6 (15)

(15) 241.2 PASS 255.7 (9)

(16) 334.5 YARDS 368.3 (6)

(21) 20.8 POINTS 25.2 (6)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) RAIDERS VS. CHIEFS (RK)

(11) 104.9 RUSH 129.4 (30)

(23) 241.1 PASS 252.8 (28)

(22) 346.0 YARDS 382.2 (30)

(16) 23.2 POINTS 22.8 (15) KEY MATCHUP Chiefs’ defense vs. Raiders’ running game: When the Raiders run for 2 or more TDs in a game, they are 8-0 over the past two seasons. The Chiefs must make them one-dimensional.

49ers at Texans

Noon

LINE — Texans by 2½

SERIES — 49ers lead 2-1; 49ers beat Texans 34-3, Oct. 6, 2013

ON OFFENSE

(RK) 49ERS VS. TEXANS (RK)

(22) 100.8 RUSH 117.0 (10)

(17) 226.5 PASS 231.9 (16)

(21) 327.3 YARDS 348.9 (14)

(29) 16.8 POINTS 24.7 (8)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) 49ERS VS. TEXANS (RK)

(29) 123.9 RUSH 104.8 (10)

(19) 231.3 PASS 235.8 (22)

(25) 355.2 YARDS 340.6 (20)

(24) 24.8 POINTS 25.8 (28) KEY MATCHUP Texans DE Jadeveon Clowney vs. 49ers’ offensive line: With J.J. Watt and Whitney Mercilus out for the season, Clowney is a one-man wrecking crew in Houston. He has 6 sacks and 12 tackles for loss in the past 6 games.

Jets at Broncos

3:05 p.m.

LINE — Jets by 1

SERIES — Broncos lead 19-15-1; Broncos beat Jets 31-17, Oct. 12, 2014

ON OFFENSE

(RK) JETS VS. BRONCOS (RK)

(18) 106.8 RUSH 107.3 (17)

(18) 222.2 PASS 208.0 (19)

(17) 329.0 YARDS 315.3 (23)

(18) 22.2 POINTS 17.2 (27)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) JETS VS. BRONCOS (RK)

(24) 119.7 RUSH 92.0 (5)

(20) 233.8 PASS 203.6 (4)

(23) 353.5 YARDS 295.6 (5)

(21) 24.0 POINTS 26.2 (31) KEY MATCHUP Jets WRs Robby Anderson and Jermaine Kearse vs. Broncos’ secondary: Anderson and Kearse have combined for 30 catches, 515 yards and 3 TDs in the past 2 games. They face the 4th-ranked Broncos’ passing defense.

Titans at Cardinals

3:05 p.m.

LINE — Titans by 3

SERIES — Cardinals lead 6-4; Cardinals beat Titans 37-34 OT, Dec. 15, 2013

ON OFFENSE

(RK) TITANS VS. CARDINALS (RK)

(7) 122.1 RUSH 76.6 (32)

(24) 202.4 PASS 251.0 (10)

(22) 324.5 YARDS 327.6 (20)

(18) 22.2 POINTS 18.2 (24)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) TITANS VS. CARDINALS (RK)

(3) 86.2 RUSH 99.5 (9)

(25) 242.3 PASS 230.8 (18)

(11) 328.5 YARDS 330.3 (13)

(18) 23.5 POINTS 25.8 (29) KEY MATCHUP Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald vs. Titans’ defense: Fitzgerald needs 26 yards receiving to pass Randy Moss for third all-time. Look for the Cardinals to feed him the ball.

Redskins at Chargers

3:25 p.m.

LINE — Chargers by 6

SERIES — Redskins lead 7-3; Redskins beat Chargers 30-24 OT, Nov. 3, 2013

ON OFFENSE

(RK) REDSKINS VS. CHARGERS (RK)

(23) 100.3 RUSH 93.2 (26)

(12) 249.4 PASS 269.8 (2)

(12) 349.7 YARDS 363.0 (9)

(15) 22.7 POINTS 22.3 (17)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) REDSKINS VS. CHARGERS (RK)

(22) 117.7 RUSH 129.8 (31)

(13) 222.4 PASS 205.7 (5)

(19) 340.1 YARDS 335.4 (17)

(30) 26.2 POINTS 17.7 (4) KEY MATCHUP Chargers vs. history of bad starts: The Chargers have won 6 of 8 games to pull into a three-way tie for first in the AFC West after an 0-4 start. The only team to make the playoffs after an 0-4 start were the 1992 San Diego Chargers.

Eagles at Rams

3:25 p.m., Fox

LINE — Rams by 1

SERIES — Eagles lead 20-19-1; Eagles beat Rams 34-28, Oct. 5, 2014

ON OFFENSE

(RK) EAGLES VS. RAMS (RK)

(2) 143.3 RUSH 115.2 (14)

(14) 241.8 PASS 257.5 (7)

(3) 385.1 YARDS 372.7 (4)

(1) 30.1 POINTS 30.1 (1)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) EAGLES VS. RAMS (RK)

(1) 68.1 RUSH 122.8 (27)

(16) 225.1 PASS 210.6 (9)

(3) 293.2 YARDS 333.4 (15)

(6) 17.9 POINTS 18.5 (7) KEY MATCHUP High-scoring offenses vs. stout defenses: The Eagles and Rams are tied for the highest-scoring team in the NFL at 30.1 points per game. The Eagles rank 6th in points allowed (17.9) and the Rams rank 7th (18.5).

Seahawks at Jaguars

3:25 p.m.

LINE — Jaguars by 2½

SERIES — Seahawks lead 5-2; Seahawks beat Jaguars 45-17, Sept. 22, 2013

ON OFFENSE

(RK) SEAHAWKS VS. JAGUARS (RK)

(21) 102.8 RUSH 149.4 (1)

(8) 255.9 PASS 206.1 (21)

(10) 358.7 YARDS 355.5 (11)

(9) 24.2 POINTS 24.9 (7)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) SEAHAWKS VS. JAGUARS (RK)

(7) 98.3 RUSH 115.4 (20)

(14) 222.8 PASS 167.1 (1)

(9) 321.1 YARDS 282.5 (1)

(7) 18.5 POINTS 14.8 (1) KEY MATCHUP Jaguars vs. 8-victory ceiling: Since 2007, the Jaguars have not managed to win more than 8 games. They get 4 shots this season, starting with the 8-4 Seahawks.

Ravens at Steelers

7:30 p.m., NBC

LINE — Steelers by 4½

SERIES — Steelers lead 26-21; Steelers beat Ravens 26-9, Oct. 1, 2017

ON OFFENSE

(RK) RAVENS VS. STEELERS (RK)

(12) 115.5 RUSH 103.1 (20)

(31) 173.0 PASS 264.5 (4)

(30) 288.5 YARDS 367.6 (7)

(13) 23.3 POINTS 23.4 (12)

ON DEFENSE

(RK) RAVENS VS. STEELERS (RK)

(16) 112.7 RUSH 98.8 (8)

(3) 198.6 PASS 195.8 (2)

(7) 311.2 YARDS 294.6 (4)

(3) 17.2 POINTS 17.8 (5) KEY MATCHUP Ravens vs. QB Ben Roethlisberger at home at night: In the NFL, few things are a better bet than Roethlisberger at home in prime time. His career record in such games is 20-3.

Sports on 12/10/2017

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