Week 7 of the NFL season kicks off when the Pittsburgh Steelers travel to take on the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football, and the 2025 MLB playoffs roll on with two matchups on Thursday, making it a perfect time to use BetMGM bonus code CBSSPORTS, which offers $150 in bonus bets if your first $10 bet wins or up to $1,500 back in bonus bets if your first qualifying wager loses. Steelers vs. Bengals begins at 8:15 p.m. ET, while Game 3 of Dodgers vs. Brewers and Game 4 of Blue Jays vs. Mariners are set to unfold.
Picks from all three games are among our Thursday MLB and NFL best bets at BetMGM Sportsbook today from the SportsLine Projection Model and our team of experts.
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The model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times, is up well over $7,000 for $100 players on top-rated NFL picks since its inception. The model is on a sizzling 42-25 run on top-rated picks dating back to 2024. It also entered the league championship round of the 2025 MLB playoffs a profitable 35-29 on top-rated MLB money-line picks this season. Anybody following its MLB betting and NFL betting picks at sportsbooks and on betting sites could have seen strong returns.
Thursday’s best bets at BetMGM
- Bengals +5.5 vs. Steelers (-105)
- Brewers money line vs. Dodgers (+155)
- Mariners money line vs. Blue Jays (-135)
Combining these three picks into a Thursday MLB and NFL parlay at BetMGM would result in a payout of +780 (risk $100 to win $780). Bet it at BetMGM here:
Bengals +5.5 vs. Steelers (-105)
“The Steelers are coming off their most impressive win of the season, but you could blame the awful spot for Cleveland, and I’m still not sure what they do better than most teams. The defense looks a lot better now that it’s healthier, but it was healthy in Week 1 when it got gashed by a Jets team that is 50-50 to complete a forward pass most weeks,” CBS Sports Gambling and Fantasy editor R.J. White said. “The 5.1 yards per play on offense is comparable to the Panthers and Raiders. Basically, this doesn’t profile as a team that should be laying this many points on the road, especially in a divisional matchup, even against a bad Bengals team.” Back Cincinnati at BetMGM Sportsbook now:
Brewers money line vs. Dodgers (+155)
Payroll disparity is showing a bit with Los Angeles winning seven of its first eight postseason games. Now the Dodgers will trot out Tyler Glasnow as their Game 3 starter and Glasnow has thrown 7 2/3 scoreless innings this postseason. However, he does have a 4.55 career ERA against Milwaukee and the Brewers have only been beaten by two runs or more twice during the 2025 MLB Playoffs. Jose Quintana will likely pitch an extended stretch for Milwaukee tonight and he threw three scoreless innings of his own in his only postseason appearance thus far. Road teams have won every game of the NLCS and ALCS so far, and the model sees value here with the Brewers winning in 48% of simulations. Bet the Brewers at BetMGM here:
Mariners money line vs. Blue Jays (-135)
The Blue Jays finally got on the board with a 13-4 win in Game 3 on Wednesday, but Seattle still holds a 2-1 advantage in the series. The Mariners should also feel pretty good sending Luis Castillo to the mound, as he has only given up one hit in six innings of work this postseason. Meanwhile, expected Toronto starter Max Scherzer posted a 10.20 ERA in September and is making his first appearance since Sept. 24 tonight. The model says Seattle wins in 59% of simulations. Bet Seattle at BetMGM:
Want more NFL picks for Thursday?
You’ve seen some of the model’s Thursday best bets. Now, get against the spread, total and money-line picks for every NFL game on the Week 7 schedule, all from the model that’s simulated every game 10,000 times.
Also at SportsLine:
You can also see weekend MLB picks from legendary handicapper Bruce Marshall, who is 177-165-3 (+2743) over his last 345 MLB picks. See his best bets right here.