The New England Patriots begin the defense of their Super Bowl title at home against the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers, who are taking a big step forward to a new chapter in the franchise’s history. Who will win in Foxboro this Sunday? The Steelers are +1600 to win Super Bowl 54, while the Patriots are +550 to repeat.
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Betting Preview for the Pittsburgh Steelers vs New England Patriots NFL Regular Season Week 1 Game on September 8, 2019
Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxboro
When: Sunday, September 8, 2019, 8:20 PM ET
Line: Pittsburgh Steelers (+6) vs. New England Patriots (-6) – view all 2019 NFL lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Pittsburgh Steelers (0-0)
The Steelers are now 100 percent free of Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell. Any other team would have been devasted by those losses, but Pittsburgh is a different case because it had ample time to prepare and determine pieces who will be able to replace them. For Brown, that’s JuJu Smith-Schuster, who is now the undisputed No. 1 receiver in the Steelers’ offense that ranked fifth in 2018 with 26.8 points and first with 313.0 passing yards per contest. Meanwhile, the Steelers’ backfield will be for James Conner to dominate after proving last season that he’s capable of handling the rock out of the backfield, rushing for 973 yards and 12 touchdowns while getting 497 receiving yards and a touchdown catch. In last year’s 17-10 home win over the Pats, Ben Roethlisberger passed for 235 yards and two touchdowns with a pair of picks on 22-for-34 completions, while James Washington led the team with 65 receiving yards.
The Steelers are 5-4-1 against the spread (ATS) in their last 10 games.
Betting on the New England Patriots (0-0)
There will be no Rob Gronkowski for the Patriots this season — unless he comes out of retirement– and that’s something of a big plus for the Steelers, who used to be huge victims of the tight end. But the Pats still have Tom Brady, who is coming off a season in which he finished with 4,355 passing yards, 29 passing touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. Brady will have a mix of new and old weapons to work with in the Patriots’ air attack, perhaps no more intriguing than Josh Gordon. This is Gordon’s first full season in New England. He is still at his prime and his skills are still up there with the best in the business. Julius Edelman is also with the team. He had 90 receiving yards and seven receptions in last year’s loss to Pittsburgh. Defensively, the Pats got a boost with the return of linebacker Jamie Collins.
The Patriots are 6-3-1 ATS in their last 10 games against the Steelers.
Writer’s Prediction
The Patriots win, 28-23.
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