Steelers Win Total Prediction
After dealing with a number of injuries in 2015, can the Pittsburgh Steelers stay healthy this season and make a run to a big win total?
According to the oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Steelers are listed with an over/under of 10.5 wins for the regular season. The over is listed at -105 to win, while the under is at -115 to happen. The Steelers odds to win the Super Bowl this season are set at 10/1.
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Mike Tomlin is entering his 10th season as head coach of the Steelers. He has a 92-52 record with the Steelers, including four seasons with at least 11 wins. Last year Pittsburgh managed to go 10-6 despite losing a number of key players during the season. The Steelers also went on to beat the Bengals in the first round of the playoffs before losing to the Broncos in the second round.
On offense, Ben Roethlisberger battled a number of leg and foot injuries in 2015, but still threw for 3,938 yards and 21 touchdowns in 12 games. He has the top receiver in the league to work with in Antonio Brown, who caught 136 passes for 1,834 yards and 10 touchdowns. He continues to be an unstoppable force for opposing teams. The Steelers also signed TE LaDarius Green in the offseason in hopes of getting more production at the position. After a tremendous 2014, Le’Veon Bell played in just six games last season due to injuries and suspensions. He is potentially going to be suspended for four games to start this season as well, but the team has DeAngelo Williams and Fitzgerald Toussaint to mix in if he can’t play. Williams rushed for 907 yards and 11 touchdowns on his own in 2015 before also suffering a season-ending injury.
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Defensively, Pittsburgh is hoping to improve from its 21st ranking in total defense last year. The Steelers were 30th against the pass in 2015. They attempted to correct that through the NFL Draft, picking Miami CB Artie Burns at 25th overall. In the second round, they drafted Maryland S Sean Davis. Up front, Pittsburgh was pretty solid, allowing just 91 rushing yards per game while acquiring 48 sacks. The sack numbers were balanced throughout the unit, with Cameron Heyward leading the way with 7 while Stephon Tuitt had 6.5. The defensive struggles against the pass were due in part to their offense putting up so many points. It led to a lot of shootouts.
The Pittsburgh schedule looks pretty favorable this season. Aside from a tough, physical division schedule, the Steelers should be able to handle most of their games against non-division opponents. They host their toughest opponents in New England, Kansas City and Dallas. The Steelers have so much fire power, it’s hard to see anyone able to shut them down. If they can avoid serious injuries, winning 11 games is certainly obtainable. Even without Bell, the offense shouldn’t take too much of a step back.
2016 NFL WIN TOTAL PICK: PITTSBURGH STEELERS OVER 10.5 (-105)