Maurkice Pouncey’s suspension reduced; Myles Garrett’s upheld

The NFL announced their ruling on the appeals of Myles Garrett and Maurkice Pouncey.

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The NFL announced the ruling on the appeals of Pittsburgh Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey and Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who were suspended for their roles in last Thursday’s brawl.

Pouncey’s suspension was reduced from three games to two. This still keeps Pouncey off the field when the Browns and Steelers have their rematch on Dec. 1. If I were a betting man, I’d guess the league did this by design assuming Pouncey would appeal.

But for Garrett, the news wasn’t so great. Despite his reported claim that Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph used a racial slur before the fracas, the NFL decided to stand pat on his indefinite suspension. This means Garrett is done for the rest of this season and will have to apply for reinstatement before he can return next season.

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Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Sunday’s Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals Week 12 matchup, with NFL betting odds, picks and best bets

The Pittsburgh Steelers (5-5) visit the winless Cincinnati Bengals (0-10) Saturday for a 1 p.m. ET kickoff at Paul Brown Stadium. We analyze the Steelers-Bengals odds and sports betting lines, while providing betting tips and advice on this Week 12 NFL matchup.

Steelers at Bengals: Week 12 preview, betting trends and notes


Get some action on the game at BetMGM by placing a sports bet!


  • The Steelers will have more than a week off after having a five-game winning streak snapped in a 21-7 loss at the Cleveland Browns in Week 11’s Thursday night game – the Steelers were 3-point underdogs.
  • The Bengals lost – but covered as 13-point dogs – at the Oakland Raiders 17-10 Sunday
  • The Steelers are 1-3 on the road and 6-4 against the spread (ATS) overall.
  • The Bengals are 0-4 at home and 4-6 ATS.
  • Both teams are 3-7 against the Over/Under this season.
  • The Steelers won the first head-to-head meeting of the season 27-3 at home Sept. 30.
  • Steelers QB Mason Rudolph has thrown for 1,551 yards with 12 touchdowns and eight interceptions, completing 62.3% of his passes.
  • In his two starts, Finley has thrown for 282 yards with one TD and two picks, while completing 47.5% of his passes.
  • The Steelers defense is 13th in points allowed (20.2 PPG), while the Bengals are 28th (27.6 PPG).

Steelers at Bengals: Key injuries

Steelers WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (concussion, knee) is doubtful, while RB James Conner (shoulder) and WR Diontae Johnson (concussion) are questionable.

Bengals WRs A.J. Green (ankle) and Auden Tate (concussion) are questionable.

Steelers at Bengals: Odds, betting lines and prediction

NFL odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Odds last updated Thursday at 5:50 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Steelers 24, Bengals 10

Moneyline (ML)

The Bengals (+225) may win eventually, but it won’t be against the STEELERS (-286), who have won nine straight in this AFC North rivalry. The -286 price is expensive, but if you’re willing – every $2.86 wagered will profit $1 if Pittsburgh wins – go for it.

Against the Spread (ATS)

The STEELERS (-6.5, -110) are worth a small play. As mentioned, they’ve had a few extra days off and should be fired up after the Browns loss. The Bengals might be playing for pride, but they’re 0-4 ATS at home and with the way their season is going, the home fans likely won’t show up in force.

Over/Under (O/U)

The UNDER 38.5 (+100) is the STRONGEST PLAY. Both teams struggle to score, ranking in the bottom third of the NFL. The Steelers are 24th, averaging 22.0 points per game, while the Bengals are 30th at 14.7 PPG. The past two head-to-head meetings totaled 30 and 29 points, respectively, and the last eight matchups are 2-6 O/U.

Plus, the Under is 7-1 in the Steelers’ last eight games after a loss, and the Under is 8-1-2 in the Bengals’ last 11 games inside the AFC.

New to sports betting? The +100 is an even bet. Every $1 wagered profits $1 if the two teams combine for 38 or fewer points.

Want action on this game? Sign up and bet atBetMGM. For more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Johnny’s plays since Nov. 6: 7-6. Strongest plays: 4-2.

Follow @JohnnyParlay11 and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Steelers C Maurkice Pouncey to appeal suspension

The NFL suspended Maurkice Pouncey three games for his actions on Thursday night.

According to NFL reporter Ian Rapoport, Pittsburgh Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey is planning to appeal his three-game suspension. Pouncey was involved in the crazy fight that broke out between the Steelers and Browns Thursday night at the end of the game. Pouncey came to the defense of his quarterback Mason Rudolph after he was hit by Browns’ defensive end Myles Garrett.

Pouncey made no apologies for his actions and stood by his decision to defend his quarterback. It is hard to see the NFL drop his suspension lower than two games. It’s doubtful they want to see Pouncey on the field in two weeks when the Steelers and Browns square off again.

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Browns’ Myles Garrett, Steelers’ Maurkice Pouncey will miss games vs. Cardinals

Two of the players involved with the skirmish on Thursday night will be suspended when their teams face the Cardinals in December.

The Arizona Cardinals will be affected by the results of the fight that took place on Thursday night at the end of the game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns. Browns defensive end Myles Garrett and Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey have received suspensions from the league and will not be available for their teams when they play the Cardinals in December.

The league released a statement announcing that Garrett, who ripped off Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph’s helmet and hit him in the head with it, has been suspended indefinitely and it will be at least through the end of this season, including the postseason should the Browns make it to the playoffs.

Pouncey was suspended three games for his involvement.

The Cardinals play the Steelers in three weeks at State Farm Stadium. It will be the final game of his suspension. The Browns come to town the next week. Garrett will obviously miss that game as well.

Garrett is Cleveland’s best defensive player and leads the team with 10 sacks.

Pouncey is perhaps the Steelers’ best offensive lineman.

So while the Cardinals had nothing to do with what happened Thursday night, their December schedule became at least a little easier because of what happened.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

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Multiple players suspended for Browns-Steelers fight

Three players, including Myles Garrett, were suspended for their roles in the Steelers-Browns fight on Thursday night.

If you missed the Week 11 contest between the AFC North rivals Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns, you missed a complete meltdown at the end of the game. Browns defensive lineman Myles Garrett ripped Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph’s helmet off and swung it at him, connecting with his head and sparking a melee in the end zone at FirstEnergy Stadium.

A day later and the end result is the suspension of three players – two from Cleveland and one from Pittsburgh — as well as some big fines, according to the NFL.

  • Garrett is suspended indefinitely, which will include the rest of the 2019 season at a minimum.
  • Browns defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi is suspended for one game.
  • Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey is suspended for three games.
  • Pittsburgh and Cleveland were fined $250,000 each.

There also appears to be some additional punishments coming down the line for other players as the league dives further into what happened during the scuffle.

These suspensions will deal a big blow to both the Steelers’ and Browns’ chances of making the postseason. All three players are starters and have been important pieces of their respective teams. Furthermore, if Garrett’s suspension holds, he’ll end up missing the Week 16 Ravens-Browns rematch that could very well decide Cleveland’s postseason fate.

With their win, the Browns are now 4-6 while the Steelers sit at 5-5. Even if Baltimore were to lose this week to the Houston Texans, the Ravens would still effectively hold a three-game lead over Pittsburgh given their head-to-head tiebreaker from the Week 5 win.

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Myles Garrett suspended indefinitely, at least through the end of the 2019 season

After one of the ugliest incidents in NFL history, Browns defensive end Myles Garrett has been suspended indefinitely.

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Following the incident near the end of the Browns’ win over the Steelers on Thursday Night Football in which Cleveland defensive end Myles Garrett removed Pittsburgh quarterback Mason Rudolph’s helmet and hit him in the head with it, you knew NFL justice was going to come fairly quickly. The incident went viral overnight and gave the NFL several black eyes in the process, so the league fired back as quickly as it could.

As reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Garrett has been suspended indefinitely, which in the league’s purview means that he will not see any on-field action throughout this season and the playoffs. Garrett must speak with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell before he is to be reinstated next season. In addition, Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey, who came to his quarterback’s defense and was ejected, will be suspended for the next three games, and Browns defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi, who was also ejected, was suspended for one game. Each team was fined $250,000 for the fracas.

Per the NFL’s statement, “Additional discipline for other players will be forthcoming through the standard accountability process, including those players that left the bench to enter the fight area.”

Rudolph, who appeared to attempt to remove Garrett’s helmet in response to Garrett’s late hit with eight seconds left in the game, was not suspended. Fines have not been ruled out for Rudolph and other players. We also have no word at this point what might happen to Browns safety Damarious Randall, who was ejected halfway through the third quarter after a helmet-to-helmet hit on Steelers receiver Diontae Johnson, who left the field bleeding from his right ear.

This was one of the ugliest games in NFL history, and the fallout is just beginning. Stay tuned to Touchdown Wire for further news as it develops.

Touchdown Wire editor Doug Farrar has also covered football for Yahoo! Sports, Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report, the Washington Post, and Football Outsiders. His first book, “The Genius of Desperation,” a schematic history of professional football, was published by Triumph Books in 2018 and won the Professional Football Researchers Association’s Nelson Ross Award for “Outstanding recent achievement in pro football research and historiography.”

Current, former Saints players react to Steelers-Browns brawl

The NFL’s Thursday Night Football game between the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers took a nasty turn when a fight broke out; the skirmish followed Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett’s takedown of Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph, and ended …

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The NFL’s Thursday Night Football game between the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers took a nasty turn when a fight broke out; the skirmish followed Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett’s takedown of Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph, and ended up involving multiple players from both teams. Garrett and Steelers offensive lineman Maurkice Pouncey were ejected, and suspensions are expected to be handed out by the league office in the coming days.

And the events didn’t go unnoticed by several New Orleans Saints players, both those with the team now and others who have since retired. Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan observed that while Rudolph instigated the fight by trying to take off Garrett’s helmet, there’s no excusing Garrett’s response to batter the quarterback with his own helmet.

Wide receiver Michael Thomas also chimed in, pointing out that one should, “Know who you running up on” before starting a fight. There’s a clear size mismatch between the 236-pound Rudolph and 271-pound Garrett, making the quarterback’s decision to start grappling with his opponent somewhat questionable.

Longtime Saints right tackle Zach Strief focused on Garrett’s use of Rudolph’s helmet as a weapon, noting that the action would be expensive and asking, “Anyone know the current fine for assault with a deadly weapon?”

An interesting perspective comes from former Saints offensive lineman Kyle Turley, who once defended quarterback Aaron Brooks by removing an opponent’s helmet and throwing it across the field. Turley chided both Garrett and Pouncey for risking a series brain injury with so many blows to the head:

Obviously there’s no place in football — or any other professional setting — for this sort of violence, but it’s also clear that neither Garrett nor Rudolph and the other Steelers players involved came out of this looking innocent. Hopefully the NFL can navigate the situation tactfully and do its part to discourage future incidents like this.

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No apologies from Maurkice Pouncey for defending his quarterback

Maurkice Pouncey is fine with being suspended but thinks Myles Garrett should be done for the year.

If you turned off the Pittsburgh Steelers game before it was over you really missed out. All the fireworks happened in the final moments when a brawl broke out between the two teams. The part you are going to hear the most about in the coming days was Browns defensive end Myles Garrett hitting Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph over the head with his own helmet.

After the game the media talked to Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey. He was in the middle of the scrum and went after Garrett after the assaulted Rudolph. He hit Garrett several times once he got Garrett on the ground.

But Pouncey makes no apologies for defending his quarterback. He said he’d accept whatever suspension the NFL hands down but his point was pretty clear. He did it for his teammate and he’d do it again. When asked if he thought he’d get suspended Pouncey said, “At this point, who cares? My man got hit in the head with a helmet. I’ll accept whatever penalty it is.”

Pouncey also said he believes the NFL should suspend Garrett for the season. A sentiment echoed by Steelers defensive tackle Cam Heyward. History says the league won’t suspend him for a season but we should know in a few days.

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