Pittsburgh Steelers v Tennessee Titans
Friday 3 Nov 11:15am
Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3) v Tennessee Titans (3-4)
Two young quarterbacks face off when the Steelers host the Titans to open Week 9 of NFL action.
Second-year Steelers QB Kenny Pickett will try to overcome a rib injury that took him out of last week’s game, while Titans second-round pick Will Levis will look to build on a strong home debut last week.
The Steelers under the masterful head coach Mike Tomlin have worked their way to a 4-3 record and second in the AFC North behind the Ravens. In a league that’s all about parity, it is quite incredible that Tomlin has not had a single losing season since he took the job in 2007.
Pittsburgh are dealing with some injuries to key players including quarterback Kenny Pickett, safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, and wide receiver Diontae Johnson. Pickett was injured during the second quarter of Sunday’s 20-10 loss to the Jaguars and was limited in training this week. He has 1,330 passing yards this season and the Steelers offence has struggled for production. Last week they found it difficult to run the ball against the Jaguars strong run defence.
The Titans have won three of four home games but are winless in three road games this season.
Rookie quarterback Will Levis did a fine job last week replacing the injured Ryan Tannehill. He threw for four touchdowns, three of those to wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins who had not caught a TD pass for nine straight games. Hopkins is listed as questionable for this due to a toe injury and did miss Wednesday’s practice. It’s tough to project what Levis can produce in his second outing following a stellar NFL debut. The Steelers have a much stronger pass rush than what he faced against the Falcons and should be boosted by the likely return of disruptive defensive lineman Cameron Heyward.
The Titans rank 23rd in points per game and 29th in passing yards. The Steelers rank 29th and 25th in those same categories so it’s not surprising to see such a low points total here. The betting market suggests that whichever team can score more than 20 points will win this game.
A rookie quarterback going on the road on a short week to face a strong Steelers defence and an elite opposition coach is a tough ask. Back Pittsburgh to win a grind-it-out game at home.
Bet: Steelers -2.5 / Pickett Under 219.5 passing yards / Levis Under 199.5 passing yards / Levis Interception at $9
