Atlanta Falcons vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Preview
Where: Heinz Field – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
When: Sunday, August 20, 2017 – 4:00 PM ET
Line: Atlanta Falcons (-2.5) at Pittsburgh Steelers (+2.5); total 39.5 – view all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: CBS
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Betting on the Atlanta Falcons (-145)
The Falcons got their preseason to an uninspiring start. They lost to the Miami Dolphins in Week 1, 23-20, by squandering a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter.
So, yeah, head coach Dan Quinn and his men are already in Super Bowl form.
Think it’s a low-hanging fruit of a joke? What is there to say? This was supposed to be the beginning of their road to redemption, and not only do they underwhelmed in production, they also choked.
Not much was notable in the passing game. The three quarterbacks were 20-for-30 for 160 yards and one touchdown, with much of the numbers coming from Matt Simms, who had a satisfactory 5.2 yards per throw. Look for the veteran QB, though, to once again handle most of the passing this coming week.
The spotlight in the receiving corps and the backfield should still be up for grabs, since no one came up big last time out. Terron Ward was the team’s leading rusher for the game (11 carries, 48 yards, TD), while it was Reggie Davis and Anthony Dable for the aerial attack (combined for five catches and 75 yards).
The defense didn’t want to get left behind, so they aimed at exceeding the offense’s mediocrity… and succeeded. The unit wasn’t able to record a sack and only had one QB hit. To top it all off, they allowed 258 passing yards and three passing touchdowns, one of which was a 99-yard, go-ahead score in the final frame.
Betting on the Pittsburgh Steelers (+125)
The Steelers shook off a sluggish start in Week 1 to bag a win. They edged the New York Giants, 20-12, courtesy of good showings from two of their neophytes – Joshua Dobbs and TJ Watt.
Dobbs and Bart Houston split the QB duties, with the former having a bigger piece of the work. Dobbs, a rookie fourth-round pick from Tennessee, went 8-for-15 for 100 yards, and also ran once for a gain of 16. He threw a pair of ugly picks, but was able to redeem himself when he tossed a perfectly-placed, lead-grabbing TD pass to Cobi Hamilton.
Proving again to be a big-play receiver, Hamilton caught both passes thrown at his side, and was able to rack up 44 and 28 yards on those receptions. He, along with running back Terrell Watson, who rushed 10 times for 44 yards and one score, were the team’s most effective weapons.
As for Watt, he was the brightest spot of the defense’s effective outing on the field. He had two sacks in one drive and also tallied three QB hits. It will be interesting to see how well he can build things off from the great debut.
Writer’s Prediction
The Steelers (+2.5) win, 21-17.
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