Steelers vs. Ravens odds: Line shifts towards Pittsburgh, but Baltimore still favored

The Steelers opened the week as underdogs for their second consecutive road game, but the line is trending towards Pittsburgh as we near game day.

After opening as favorites in each of their first five games of the 2020 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers were considered slight underdogs last week as they traveled to Tennessee to face an undefeated Titans team. Though their Week 7 contest ended up being closer than Steelers fans would have liked, Mike Tomlin’s team took the lead on the very first drive of the game and never lost it.

This week, Pittsburgh is tasked with taking on a stingy Baltimore Ravens team on the road. This two-game stretch between the Titans and Ravens could very well prove to be Pittsburgh’s most challenging consecutive games this season.

Recently, oddsmakers opened betting lines with Baltimore favored by 5.5 points, courtesy of The Action Network. Despite Pittsburgh’s perfect record through six games, it wasn’t a shock to see the Ravens favored in this contest. They are playing on their own turf and will be fresh off their bye week.

Meanwhile, Pittsburgh’s bye forcefully came in Week 4 after the game was postponed due to multiple positive COIVD-19 tests by Titans players and personnel. But despite the factors going against them, should the Steelers be underdogs in this contest?

Where the Steelers vs. Ravens odds may finish

As of Thursday afternoon, the line has shifted by 1.5 points towards Pittsburgh. What once opened as a Baltimore team favored by 5.5 now has the Ravens just 4-point favorites in this contest.

There are several reasons for this early shift. While the Ravens are a fresher team who don’t have to travel this week, bettors are no doubt taking notice of how Pittsburgh was able to march the ball down the field against the Titans on nearly every drive in Week 7.

Despite Ben Roethlisberger throwing for just 5.5 yards per attempt and 3 interceptions last week, it has to be encouraging to Steelers fans to know that they can still come away with a win against a very good opponent when everything doesn’t go right on offense.

Not counting Tennessee’s turnover on downs, Pittsburgh was -3 in the turnover department last week, yet they were still able to secure a road win against a team that is considered by most to be a top-five team in the league.

Like last year, the Ravens are still statistically the best rushing team in the National Football League – averaging 164.3 yards on the ground per contest, according to Team Rankings. While Lamar Jackson could certainly spell trouble for a defensive that is missing an athlete like linebacker Devin Bush, Pittsburgh is stopping the run at an incredible rate – allowing just 68.8 yards per game on the ground.

This is nearly a 100-yard difference between what the Ravens average on offense. Something’s obviously got to give on Sunday.

When it’s all said and done, I wouldn’t be shocked to see the line fall to just 1-2 points in favor of Baltimore this weekend – and that takes into account the home-field advantage. So far, most experts are taking the Ravens, but if the Steelers can stop the run (like they have done all season), they will have a very good shot at winning their seventh straight game this week.