After months and months without football, the NFL is officially back! As has become tradition, the Super Bowl champions are hosting the first game of the season as they unveil their championship banner on the first Thursday of the season. The New England Patriots are not only showcasing another Lombardi Trophy, but they are also showing vindication as a fan base after the end of the "Deflategate" scandal. It almost feels like the Pittsburgh Steelers are going to be the sacrificial lambs here of the opening game of the season.
WHEN THE NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS HAVE THE BALL
Tom Brady is officially back. He has played in 96 consecutive games for the Pats, and instead of being suspended for this game as he initially was, he has won his day in court and will be playing in this one. And you can bet that he is going to be back with vengeance, proving that he can indeed play with properly inflated footballs.
And what a defense he has to pick on! The Steelers have one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL. They ranked No. 27 in the league last year against the pass, including giving up 30 touchdown passes. Now, both Ike Taylor and Troy Polamalu are gone, and a secondary including William Gay, Shamarko Thomas, Mike Mitchell and Cortez Allen doesn't exactly exude confidence for live bettors.
Especially with LeGarrette Blount suspended for this game for violation of the league's substance abuse policy, the New England offense is going to be based more on the pass than the run. That's good news for live bettors on the over and for the Pats assuming that Brady is on point against a bad pass defense.
WHEN THE PITTSBURGH STEELERS HAVE THE BALL
There are a lot of injuries and suspensions which are going to play a role here when Pittsburgh is on offense. Le'Veon Bell and Martavis Bryant have been suspended for this game, while Maurkice Pouncey and Mike Adams are both on IR along the offensive line.
On the other side of the ball, Dont'a Hightower is dealing with a shoulder injury, which could put a crimp in the pass rush for the Pats.
The big issue we have on defense for New England is at the cornerback spot. No longer are Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner out there in the secondary. Logan Ryan and Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler are going to be under the gun against a pass-heavy offense which is going to probably end up with a 2/1 ratio of throwing it to running it.
Again, this is a real trend towards the over in this game, though it should be noted that a lot of the Pittsburgh passing game does revolve around Antonio Brown and the relatively short passing game.
TREND TO TRACK
The games in this series have, not surprisingly, been of the higher scoring variety. Two seasons ago, Brady and Roethlisberger combined to put 1,089 yards and 86 points on the board in the highest scoring game in the history of this series.
The over is 8-2 in this series since Brady has come into the league and 6-2 since Roethlisberger has joined as well.
It's going to be tough to play the over in this game, knowing that the total is currently set at 52.5, which would be the highest in the history of this series. It's also notable that the total is up from 50.5 at the open, and you can bet that as this game goes on, the total is only going to get progressively higher proportionate to the amount of time left in the game.
It's a tough sell to make, especially for the generally sharp bettor who hates playing overs in games like these on national television, but the over in live betting is probably the right call in this one.
The NFL betting lines and props for this Thursday game were first available at BookMaker Sportsbook. The New England Patriots were lined at -7 alongside a total of 50.5. Live wagering during commercials offers adjusted moneylines, totals and spreads. Log in and start gambling during the game now!
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The duel between the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers will go down Thursday, September 10, 2015 at 8:30 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium. The game will be televised live on NBC.
