Denver Broncos vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Betting – NFL, September 20, 2020

After blowing an opportunity to kick the year off on the right foot, Denver is facing quite the dilemma. A team that was already without Von Miller got banged up on Monday night and will now be without additional starters in week 2.

Pittsburgh also endured a couple on key losses on their offensive line, but boy did their defense look determined.

Let’s dive into the matchup Sunday afternoon at Heinz Field. In the end, I’ll reveal my Broncos vs. Steelers betting pick.

Talk about a line swinging in one direction, just a couple days ago you could have latched onto the

Steelers -5. Now Pittsburgh backers are looking at laying north of a touchdown – even if they shop their lines diligently.

As of late Wednesday afternoon, Pitt was -7.5 at all of the top US sports betting sites.

The total has oscillated between 41 and 41.5, which might seem low for a game involving a Ben Roethlisberger-led offense. Then again, we just saw the Steelers defense swallow Saquon Barkley, and the Denver offense is dealing with significant injuries.

Denver at full-strength would have a tough time going into Pittsburgh and producing a ton of success. Unfortunately for fans in Mile High, the organization is already bruised just one week into the year.

The status of wideouts Courtland Sutton and KJ Hamler is still up the air, and Phillip Lindsay is likely to miss several weeks with a foot injury. The secondary faces a brutal test trying to hold down the likes of JuJu Smith-Schuster and Diontae Johnson, and they’ll be playing without the services of one of their starting CBs.

#Broncos CB AJ Bouye’s dislocated shoulder underwent tests yesterday, and source said no surgery is planned. It’s on to rehab, and Bouye should be out just a few weeks. That likely means he’s headed to Injured Reserve, from which he can return after just three weeks.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 16, 2020

Perhaps the saving grace for Denver in this game is their ability to get after Big Ben given the slew of wounds on the Pittsburgh front line.

Starting guard David DeCastro still isn’t ready, and his replacement in week 1, newly-acquired Stefan Wisniewski is also now hurt. The worst of it all is Zach Banner, the team’s starting right tackle, is set to have season-ending surgery on his right knee on Friday.

Throw in James Conner’s problematic ankle and it’s conceivable that the Broncos can wreak a bit of havoc in the backfield.

The question is – can Vic Fangio’s squad score enough points to hang around?

Fangio demonstrated his lack of preparedness by not burning those timeouts, and don’t be so soon to crown Jerry Jeudy as the greatest thing since sliced bread. The Alabama product dropped a couple of key passes that could have changed the outcome of the Broncos week 1 game.

Expect Pitt to win this game at home, but I’m reluctant to think they’ll be able to run away and hide. My Broncos vs. Steelers prediction is that we see a slugfest of sorts with not a lot of pretty football.

Operating with a couple of new bodies upfront is going to throw off the timing and disrupt Roethlisberger’s rhythm. And keep in mind, Denver only put up 14 points against the Tennessee Titans.

Now they are playing on a short week against a front seven in Pittsburgh that’s reminiscent of the Steel Curtain in the 1970s.

Take the under here and start rooting for lots of punts.

If a Broncos vs. Steelers prediction isn’t enough to fulfill your Sunday appetite of betting, start keying in on some of the other NFL matchups that are in store.

Noah Davis and I have broken down a few of them below.