The Pittsburgh Steelers (-4) will get the 2018 season underway against their AFC North foe Cleveland Browns (+4) at FirstEnergy Stadium. Fans can tune in to the action on CBS and this early afternoon matchup is scheduled to start at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Betting Preview: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cleveland Browns
In this Sunday AFC game, Pittsburgh is tabbed as the favorite and is currently giving up 4 points. The Steelers are also receiving -170 moneyline odds while the Browns are +150. There will probably be some good live betting scenarios for this matchup, and Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 45.5 points.
The opening line was originally 6.5 while the total was set initially at 47, so the sharp action is siding with both the Browns and the under.
Including the postseason, the Steelers finished 13-4 straight-up (SU) last season while the Browns could only manage a 0-16 SU record in 2017. Against conference foes, the Steelers finished 10-2 SU and the Browns were 0-12 SU versus American Football Conference franchises. The Steelers were 3-1 SU when playing out-of-conference teams while the Browns were 0-4 SU against such competition.
The Steelers averaged 286.5 passing yards per game and 92.0 rushing yards per game against their four out-of-conference opponents last season. The team managed to put up 23.5 points per game against those teams while giving up 18.8 per contest. Against AFC competition, they averaged 26.0 points-for, 19.4 points-against, 282.3 pass yards per game and 108.3 rush yards per game.
When facing off against out-of-conference competition, the Browns passed for 203.0 yards per game and rushed for 132.0 a game on their way to 16.0 points per contest. When facing AFC opponents, the offensive unit tallied 14.2 points per game by averaging 227.1 passing yards and 98.8 rush yards. The Browns defense yielded 29.5 PPG to non-conference foes and 24.3 PPG to teams in conference,
It appears that the Browns ought to hold an edge in all aspects of the ground game. Their backfield generated 4.5 yards per carry last season while their defense limited opponents to 3.4 YPC. The Steelers registered 3.8 YPC last year while allowing a YPC of 4.4 to opponents..
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cleveland Browns Free Betting Pick
SU Winner: Steelers, ATS Winner: Browns, O/U: Under
Betting Trends
- Pittsburgh logged 29 passing touchdowns last season.
- Cleveland put up 15 passing touchdowns last season.
- Pittsburgh created 12 rushing touchdowns last season.
- Cleveland put up 11 rushing touchdowns last season.
- The Pittsburgh offense allowed 24 sacks last season. Their defense created 56 sacks.
- Cleveland offensive line allowed 50 sacks last year. Their defense recorded 34 sacks.
