The preseason's final week is usually time for the starters to rest before the grind begins. However, it could be one last chance for the Pittsburgh Steelers to get their offense clicking as they take on the Detroit Lions. The Lions are 1-1 despite not playing most of their starters for the duration. It is time to continue our NFL odds series with a Steelers-Lions prediction and pick.
The Steelers' preseason has been sabotaged by Russell Wilson's failure to separate himself from backup Justin Fields. Most people expect Wilson to be the Week 1 starter, but his play isn't worthy of the honor. Pittsburgh is 0-2 thus far and scored 15 points over the two games. Wilson didn't play in the opener but played last week against the Buffalo Bills and had just 47 yards with three sacks. Fields outplayed Wilson again, going 11 for 17 with 92 yards, and led the team with 42 rushing yards.
You won't see Jared Goff, Jahmyr Gibbs, or Sam LaPorta in the preseason's final game. Gibbs and LaPorta are dealing with injuries that should be better in time for them to play in Week 1. Nate Sudfeld and Hendon Hooker will split the snaps at quarterback as the battle continues to be Goff's backup. The pair rotated second-team snaps during practice but Sudfeld has started each game. Hooker looked like a solid candidate to unseat Sudfeld in last week's game against the Kansas City Chiefs, going 12 of 15 for 150 yards with a rushing touchdown.
Here are the NFL Preseason odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NFL Preseason Odds: Steelers-Lions Odds
Pittsburgh Steelers: -7 (-105)
Moneyline: -260
Detroit Lions: +7 (-115)
Moneyline: +260
Over: 35.5 (-105)
Under: 35.5 (-115)
How to Watch Steelers vs. Lions Preseason
Time: 1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
TV: Local CBS and Fox affiliates
Stream: fuboTV (Click Here for free trial)
Why The Steelers Could Cover The Spread/Win
The Steelers must fix their offensive woes to avoid a regular season disaster. You have to believe that Wilson and Fields can outduel Sudfeld and Hooker. The Steelers have plenty of players that need to prove themselves in this game, and the depth chart shows plenty of first-stringers making the trip. They have wide receivers Dez Fitzpatrick, Quez Watkins, and Scotty Miller aiming to make the team which should give Wilson and Fields plenty of weapons to exploit a second-string Lions squad. The biggest question is whether a beat-up offensive line can protect Wilson long enough to get comfortable.
Why The Lions Could Cover The Spread/Win
The Lions are the underdogs in this matchup because the Steelers will possibly play their starters while the Lions rest all of theirs. However, it's hard to see why this is the case, as the Steelers have been playing Fields and the starters for most of the postseason but have scored just 15 points total. Dan Campbell has taken a different approach by sitting his starters for most of the preseason but earned a 1-1 record. The Lions struggled with three points in the preseason opener but managed 24 against the Chiefs in a 24-23 victory. If the Lions can come close to replicating that performance, the Steelers offense won't score enough points to cover the six-point spread.
Final Steelers-Lions Prediction & Pick
The Steelers don't have many reasons to believe in their offense, and injuries to Nate Herbig and Jaylen Warren will lessen the gap between the Steelers' first-stringers and the Lions' second-stringers. Detroit hasn't backed down without their starters in the game all preseason and we can't expect them to do it here, especially against a struggling Steelers offense.
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Final Steelers-Lions Prediction & Pick: Lions +7 (-115)
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