Tennessee Titans vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Sunday, 9/8/13, 1:00 PM EST
Opening Point Spread: Pittsburgh -6.5
Current Betting Line: Pittsburgh -7
Opening Total: 41.5
Current Total: 42
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker
Tennessee and Pittsburgh will be meeting up for the 76th time, with the franchise coming off a 1-3 SUATS preseason, which is important to consider when making your NFL expert picks Sunday afternoon. The Titans earned a surprising 26-23 victory over the Steelers as 5.5-point home underdogs last season—despite getting outgained by 53 yards in the contest. The team is hoping that it can fix its defensive problems from a year ago, as the unit allowed a league-worst 29.4 points per game. Tennessee is 5-6 ATS as underdogs of 3.5 to 9.5 points the last two-plus seasons, with the OVER going 7-5 in that situation.
The Titans are entrusting their offense with quarterback Jake Locker, who completed 56.4 percent of his passes for 2,176 yards with 10 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 11 contests last season. The former Washington Huskies star averaged just 147.0 passing yards and compiled a disappointing passer rating of 65.6 over his last three games. Tennessee still possesses one of the more dynamic running backs in Chris Johnson, who ran for 1,243 yards and six scores in 2012.
Pittsburgh went 0-4 SUATS during its 2013 exhibition schedule, with the UNDER cashing in three of those contests. The Steelers definitely want to get off to a strong start, as they’ve dropped their opening game the last two years—but both of those have come away from Heinz Field. “It’s definitely important to start the season on the right note,” commented Steelers wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery. The franchise has won its last 10 home openers—the longest active streak of its kind in the league. Pittsburgh is 46-23 ATS as home favorites of 3.5 to 7 points since 1992.
The Steelers led the NFL with 275.8 yards allowed per game last season, but managed to create just 20 turnovers—the fewest in the league. Pittsburgh is hoping that quarterback Ben Roethlisberger can stay healthy, as he suffered a sprained shoulder and rib injury a year ago—with the team being 6-3 at the time of the injury and finishing 8-8 and missing the playoffs. He completed 66.1 percent of his passes for 2,287 yards and 17 touchdowns before going down.
Sports bettors will likely back the Steelers due to the Titans being 0-3 ATS on the road with a betting total of 38.5 to 42 points the last two-plus seasons.
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