NFL forecast: Steelers center says ‘Screw the Vegas lines’
The Pittsburgh Steelers stunned the Bills in last season’s opener at Buffalo, winning 23-16 as 6½-point underdogs.
Oddsmakers expect a much different result on Sunday in Orchard Park, New York.
The Bills are the NFL’s biggest favorites this season at -14. The Steelers are the biggest underdogs they’ve been since 1969, according to ESPN.
Not that it matters to Pittsburgh center Mason Cole.
“I don’t pay attention to what Vegas is saying or what the line is,” Cole said. “They are gonna do what they’re gonna do.
“In our minds, we’re going to go out there and win the game. Screw the Vegas lines. We don’t worry about that, whether we are the favorites or if we are the underdogs.”
I don’t expect the Steelers to beat the Bills. But betting on double-digit underdogs in the NFL has historically been a money maker and Pittsburgh is 44-25-3 ATS as an underdog under coach Mike Tomlin.
Buffalo is still decimated by injuries, with a game against Kansas City on deck. Pittsburgh is sixth in takeaways (2.0 per game) and 15th in scoring defense (22.5 ppga).
Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett showed some promise in last week’s loss to the Jets. The rookie completed 13 of 13 passes, though three of those were intercepted by New York.
Four more plays (home team in CAPS):
Texans (+7) over JAGUARS: Houston has won eight straight meetings with Jacksonville, 14 of the last 16 and 19 of the last 23. The Jaguars are one of the league’s surprise teams at 2-2. They jumped out to a 14-0 lead at Philadelphia last week before losing as Trevor Lawrence had five turnovers. The Texans (0-3-1) are the NFL’s only winless team, but they’ve been competitive in every game.
COMMANDERS (+2) over Titans: Washington has lost three straight since its season-opening win over Jacksonville. The Commanders are desperate for a win. Rookie running back Brian Robinson might make his NFL debut five weeks after he was shot during an apparent attempted robbery. Tennessee is coming off a big divisional road win at Indianapolis and will be without receiver Treylon Burks and pass rusher Bud Dupree.
PATRIOTS (-3) over Lions: Detroit leads the league in scoring (35.0 ppg) and is last in the league in scoring defense (35.3 ppg). The 281 combined points scored (140) and allowed (141) are the most ever by a team in the first four games of the season. New England rookie QB Bailey Zappe (rhymes with happy) is expected to make his first NFL start after coming off the bench last week and almost leading the Patriots to an upset of the Packers in an overtime loss at Lambeau Field. New England is strong at home and has a big edge on defense and a solid rushing attack that should control the game.
Raiders (+7) over CHIEFS: Kansas City has dominated the series. But a case can be made that the Chiefs are in a bad spot after whipping Tampa Bay on Sunday night in the stadium where they lost the 2021 Super Bowl to the Buccaneers. They also have a rematch of last season’s thrilling playoff game against the Buffalo Bills on deck next week. The Raiders have been in every game and have enough offense to keep this one close on “Monday Night Football.”
Last week: 3-0-2
Season: 10-8-2
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.
