The Pittsburgh Steelers were annihilated by the New England Patriots on Sunday Night Football, but here is why they are now favorites to win the division.
The Steelers were obliterated by the Patriots and humiliated on national television. Though the first few drives made it look like we were in for a close matchup, things did not go according to plan.
The Steelers stalled on offense, one drive after another. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh’s defense continued to allow Tom Brady and company to march down the field for scores. Eventually, the Steelers reached the point of no return, as they lost by 30 points in Foxborough.
Remarkably, the Steelers are now favorites to win the AFC North despite the beating they took on Sunday night. According to Fanduel Sportsbook, Pittsburgh actually elevated their odds after the blowout loss.
The Steelers odds now sit at +160. The Baltimore Ravens jumped into second place with +170 odds, and the Cleveland Browns (who once had the greatest odds to win the division) dropped all the way down to third (+200). Cincinnati rounds out the group with long-shot odds of +2500.
The reason for the change had less to do with Pittsburgh’s blowout loss, and more to do with Cleveland’s awful performance.
The Steelers may have lost a blowout game to the defending Super Bowl Champions, but the Browns were owned at home by Marcus Mariota and the Tenessee Titans.
The Browns started off hot, as they marched down the field and punched in a rushing score. However, it was all downhill from there. Cleveland’s next seven offensive drives consisted of 6 punts and a safety. In the second half, Baker Mayfield threw 3 interceptions.
While this was happening, the Ravens (who recently stood the third-best odds of winning the AFC North) completely destroyed the Dolphins.
Pittsburgh’s week one performance against New England was far from pretty, and it was one of the hardest games to try to stomach in recent years. Still, it’s important to remember that – as bad as it was – it’s still just one game.
Though they will still have to worry about staying above Cleveland and Baltimore, it’s encouraging to see that betting sites like Fanduel still give the Steelers the best chance of winning the division in 2019. Once this team shakes off the rust, those odds could increase even further.