Pittsburgh Dispatches Detroit In NFL Play

Pittsburgh Dispatches Detroit In NFL Play

by Ross Everett

The Pittsburgh Steelers found themselves an unlikely ally in
an all too close road game against the Detroit Lions: the
fans. With Steelers’ fans at times appearing to outnumber
Lions’ supporters, the Steelers got a late game boost from
their enthusiasm. On the field, Ben Roethlisberger threw a
season high three touchdown passes as the Steelers survived
by a final score of 28-20. Pittsburgh improved to 3-2 with
the victory, while Detroit dropped to 1-4.

NFL betting enthusiasts who backed the Lions as +11 home
underdogs were rewarded with the pointspread cover. The
Lions have covered two of their five games this season,
while the Steelers slumped to 1-4 against the number. Its a
longstanding pointspread trend for the defending Superbowl
champion to underperform against the number and particularly
in the early part of the season.

After the game, the biggest topic of conversation was the
vocal support of the Pittsburgh fans. Linebacker LaMarr
Woodley said that they were making so much noise that it
undermined the Detroit offense’s effort:

“That worked in our favor. Those offensive linemen couldn’t
hear the snap count, so they had to watch the ball just like
we do.”

Hines Ward said it evoked memories of the 2006 Superbowl at
the venue:

“It brought back a lot of memories. We had just as many fans
as we did that time.”

Head coach Mike Tomlin added his praise:

“Man, they traveled awesome. It was spectacular to stand on
the visiting sideline and see the fan support that we had
today in this building.”

Lions’ coach Jim Schwartz took some consolation from his
team’s effort in the loss:

“We didn’t always play smart in that game and we didn’t
always play well, but I’m proud that we battled the whole
way. There were a couple places where it would have been
easy for us to give in, and we didn’t do that.”

Daunte Culpepper started at quarterback for the Lions and
echoed his coach’s sentiments:

“I still think we have a good ballclub here, but a good
ballclub will look at a situation like this and use it to
find a way to start winning these games. That’s what we have
to find a way to do.”

The Steelers return home for their next two games. They’ll
host the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, with the Steelers a -14
home favorite and the total set at 38. The Minnesota Vikings
will come to town the following Sunday and after a bye week
Pittsburgh will head west to face the surprising Denver
Broncos on Monday, November 9. The Lions will play at Green
Bay this weekend as a +13 road underdog with the total set
at 48. They’ll enjoy a bye the following weekend before
hosting the St. Louis Rams on Sunday, November 1.

Ross Everett is a Nevada based freelance sports writer and a
noted expert on NFL
football betting. He contributes to a number of online
and print publications, covering topics ranging from dog
behavior to fine dining to how to successfully bet on NFL football. He
enjoys traveling, martial arts and collecting cigars when
not working.