Steelers vs. Patriots SNF Prediction
The NFL Sunday Night Football matchup in Week 1 is excellent, as Antonio Brown’s newest team will host its former team when the Patriots take on the Steelers at 8:20 p.m. ET. Will the Pats cover as a 5.5-point favorite?
Game Snapshot
477 Pittsburgh Steelers (+5.5) at 478 New England Patriots (-5.5); O/U 49
8:20 p.m. ET, September 8, 2019
Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, MA
Public Betting
According to our NFL Public Betting Chart page, the Steelers are receiving 52% of the betting tickets as a 5.5-point favorite over the Patriots.
Pittsburgh Steelers Fantasy Spin
Steelers signed CB Joe Haden to a two-year, $22 million extension through 2021. The deal includes a hefty $16.8 million signing bonus. Haden is no longer an elite corner, but he’s still a serviceable CB1 and deserved a new contract. The Steelers now control Haden through his age-33 season, which somewhat lines up with their Super Bowl window with Big Ben aging.
New England Patriots Fantasy Spin
ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reports Antonio Brown sought advice from social media consultants to “accelerate” his release from the Raiders. That would explain some of Brown’s more outlandish maneuvers in the past week, including an Instagram story criticizing the Raiders for fining him (which later led to a heated confrontation with GM Mike Mayock) and a YouTube clip leaking a recorded (presumably private) conversation with coach Jon Gruden. Brown’s acts of self-sabotage worked exactly as intended, drawing the Raiders’ ire and eventually freeing him to align with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick in New England. The Patriots offered a first-rounder for Brown earlier this offseason but the Steelers weren’t keen to trade him to a conference rival. Turns out, he found his way to Foxboro anyway. The Evil Empire strikes again.
Pittsburgh Betting Trends
The Steelers are 1-4-1 against the spread in their last six conference games and are 1-4 against the number in their last five games played in September.
New England Betting Trends
The Patriots are 39-16-2 against the number in their last 57 home games.
Prediction
The Steelers have struggled historically in this matchup, posting a 2-5 record against the spread in their last seven road games versus the Patriots and are just 5-13 against the number in their last 18 games versus New England overall. Brown won’t play tonight for the Patriots because he’s not eligible, but Tom Brady and Co. will be at full strength regardless. The Steelers, meanwhile, will look much differently than they did two years ago offensively when they still had Brown and Le’Veon Bell. James Conner filled in admirably last year for Bell and JuJu Smith-Schuster is a fantastic player. But the bottom line is that Pittsburgh is not as explosive as it has been under Mike Tomlin in recent years. I like the Pats tonight.
NFL Week 1 Prediction: New England Patriots -5.5