9/19/21 NFL RAIDERS VS STEELERS
LAS VEGAS @ PITTSBURGH (PIT -5.5, 47)
RAIDERS vs. STEELERS 9/19/21
After a surprising Week 1 win over the Bills in Buffalo, Pittsburgh heads back to the Steel City for its home opener this week against the Raiders. Las Vegas was also a surprise winner beating Baltimore in overtime on Monday night. Both Pittsburgh and Las Vegas were among the nine underdogs that won outright in Week 1 of NFL play.
The Steelers continue to have one of the best defenses in the NFL. That defense kept them in the game at Buffalo and then it was a blocked punt for a touchdown that helped give Pittsburgh the victory. The Steelers will need a similar effort to beat the Raiders on Sunday.
Las Vegas played a similar defense in Baltimore on Monday night. It took them a while, but the Raiders finally were able to figure it out by scoring 17 points in the fourth quarter. A Daniel Carson 55-yard field goal tied the game and Zay Jones’ 31-yard TD pass from Derek Carr in overtime gave the Raiders the win.
Pittsburgh will need to find a way to generate some offense against a Raiders defense that is improved from 2020. The Steelers running game, a question mark last year, produced just 75 yards against Buffalo. QB Ben Roethlisberger was only 18-of-32 for 188 yards. That’s how good Pittsburgh was on defense and special teams in Week 1.
The Raiders defense also gets S Roderic Teamer back this week after missing Week 1. Teamer is listed as questionable for Sunday as is guard Richie Incognito. The only Steeler that could have an impact listed on the injury report is LB Robert Spillane, who is listed as questionable.
The Raiders have beaten the Steelers in three of the last four meetings, but the two teams haven’t played since 2018. The home team has won each of the previous two games, but this is the first time the teams have played since the Raiders moved to Las Vegas.
In addition to going 3-1 straight up against Pittsburgh, the Raiders are 7-1 ATS in their last eight games against the Steelers. But, Las Vegas is just 2-5 ATS in the team’s last seven games. One of those covers, of course, was on Monday night as a 4-point underdog.
Going back to last season, the Raiders offense has scored at least 25 points in six straight games. They have scored over 30 in each of their last two. As a result, the Over has been in play cashing in six games in a row. Despite one of the league’s best defenses, the Over has also been trending for the Steelers. The Over is 4-1 in Pittsburgh’s last five games.