Thursday Night Football: Titans vs. Steelers Preview

THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL: TITANS VS. STEELERS PREVIEW – The Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3) host the Tennessee Titans (3-4) to open up Week 9 with a Thursday night matchup. The Steelers were defeated 20-10 by the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 8, while the Titans scored a 28-23 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in their matchup.

The Odds

Kickoff

When: Thursday, November 2, 2023 at 8:15 PM ET

Where: Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh, PA

TV: Prime/Amazon

Public Bets: Pittsburgh, 58%

Public Money: Pittsburgh, 64%

Odds courtesy of DraftKings, as of November 2, 2023

Steelers Need an Offense

The Steelers have been flat out lucky to be in a position of strength in the AFC North and the conference. The formula of forcing multiple turnovers and hoping that opponents miss field goals and make mistakes is not sustainable. This came to a head last week against the Jaguars as the defense forced three turnovers — two in the redzone — and still came out with a loss.

Related: Godzilla’s Titans Preview

This defense is good, but it’s not the ’85 Bears, and will need the offense to start fast and get an early lead in most games. This needs to start tonight against a Titans defense that ranks 22^nd in Total Defense according to ESPN.com. It’s time for quarterback Kenny Pickett to take advantage of a weak secondary as the Titans’ defensive front is the strength of this team.

If Jeffery Simmons, Denico Autry and Harold Landry can play the way they did Sunday, the Titans have potential to wreak havoc in the Steelers’ backfield.

Is This a Must Win for the Steelers?

It seems insane to describe this as a must-win game for the Steelers. They sit with a respectable 4-3 overall record and are 2-0 in arguably the toughest division in the league. With wins over the Cleveland Browns (4-3) and Baltimore Ravens (6-2) the Steelers are in a solid position to make a run towards the playoffs.

The problem is the Cincinnati Bengals are heating up and they still play them twice. Both the Ravens and Browns feel like they lost the previous games rather than the Steelers doing enough to win them. The Steelers must win at home, especially against a team that is sub .500 and starting a rookie quarterback.

They failed with this a few weeks back against the Houston Texans, which could end up being a huge tiebreaker if conference records come into play.

The Difference-Makers

The Titans defensive front must stop the running game against the Steelers. This unit was first in the NFL last year and is ranked 16^th coming into this week. All-pro defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons will need to continue his fast start and put pressure on Pickett who may be pressing to have the first complete game of his career.

Rookie QB Will Levis had four touchdowns in his NFL debut last week against the Atlanta Falcons. The Titans don’t need a repeat performance, they just need turnover free football.

The difference for the Steelers will come from receiver George Pickens. It is time the Steelers recognized that he is a game-changing player and provided him with double-digit targets. The results of which could save the Steelers season and give this offense and identity.

If Pickett can lead this offense to some early touchdowns, they will cruise to victory.

The Pick

It’s time to switch it up and take the Pittsburgh Steelers on a moneyline bet (-148). It’s hard to trust them to cover the three-point spread. They will win this game 22-20 to cover that and hit the OVER (o/u 37).

Will Levis is about to come back to earth and throw at least one interception. Take that Player Prop bet of -150 to throw one INT.