Now that the fake games are done it’s time to get the real thing going. The New England Patriots begin defense of their title by hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday in the first game of the 2015 season.
The two teams have represented the AFC in the Super Bowl nine times in the past 14 seasons and the Pats are already winners with Tom Brady starting against a team minus several key players to suspension and injury.
ODDS
New England opened as a 7-point favorite once the Brady decision was announced. The line has since dropped to -6.5, making the Pats the highest favored home team on the board. The total rose a point to 51.5 from its opening 50.5.
KEY INJURIES
LeVeon Bell – Begins his two-game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy. Veteran DeAngelo Williams will start in his place getting a bulk of the carries.
Martavis Bryant – Was slapped with a three-game suspension and is out until Week 5. Former first-round pick Darrius Heyward-Bey moves into his spot as the third receiver.
Maurkice Pouncey – Pittsburgh’s starting center is out after undergoing surgery for a broken fibula.
Bryan Stork – New England’s starting center missed the last two days of practice with a concussion and is questionable. If he can’t go, undrafted rookie David Andrews and Ryan Wendell are the top candidates to replace him.
KEY MISMATCH
Tight end Rob Gronkowski enters the season healthy and that’s good news for Brady, who is without receiver Brandon LaFell. Brady will rely on Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola and Gronk to run their possession passing game and there is a chance the Pats will bring in another receiver with an inexperienced group of receivers on the depth chart. But New England’s never been the big-play type passing team, frequently running short patterns with receivers while getting the most out of the tight ends and running backs. Brady is a master at running the game plan and the Pats should be able to take advantage of a Steelers team that struggled during the preseason. Pittsburgh is attempting to figure out what it looks like on defense under new coordinator Keith Butler and without Troy Polamalu, Brett Keisel, Ike Taylor and Jason Worilds.
KEY STAT
253.0 – The Steelers’ pass yards allowed per game. The available receivers will be enough for Brady to consistently move the ball against a team that ranked 30th in Football Outsiders pass defense rankings last year and hasn’t improved all that much.
BETTING ANGLE
The Patriots were big winners in the courtroom when Brady’s four-game suspension for his knowledge of the situation in the deflated footballs scandal was overturned. That’s a big relief for the Pats, who would’ve been forced to start Jimmy Garoppolo for the first quarter of the season. New England is no stranger to controversy, however and the Pats are expert at blocking out distractions. They’re also pretty good at using external factors as motivators. After they were penalized for illegally videotaping opponents in 2007, they ran off a perfect record in the regular season before losing the Super Bowl, blowing their chance at the NFL’s first 19-0 season. Brady vigorously fought his suspension in the courts, and now that he’s been cleared to play, expect him to do so with an edge.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
Pittsburgh got few answers during the preseason to several questions about its defense. The unit took several steps back not bringing in enough talent to successfully transition from their outstanding veteran group of years past. Now that a majority of those players have moved on the Steelers have yet to plug the holes. Their secondary is a mess and there is no depth on the defensive line. These aren’t the problems you want when facing Brady and the pats. Ben Roethlisberger and the offense will do what they can to keep the game tight, but without the suspended Bell and Bryant, the Steelers won’t do enough.
New England 26, Pittsburgh 20
The NFL odds for this Thursday contest were first released by BookMaker and the Patriots were positioned as 7-point favorites with a total of 50.5. Now you can wager in-game while the action unfolds with BookMaker's live betting option.
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 matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots is set for Thursday, September 10, 2015, at 8:30 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium. The game will be broadcast nationally on NBC.
