It was lining up to be the end of a perfect weekend. As people started thinking about going back to work, the goal was simple, recover all the weekend’s losses with this one game. And Vegas saw it coming, so they begged Joe Public to take the points by handing over a 14 as the pointspread. But hardly anyone took the bait as the Steeler’s were already 6-4 ATS this season and looking to improve to 7-4 with an easy victory at a chilly Heinz Field. And that’s why they play the game..
Making the decision easier, the Packers were shut out at home last week by Baltimore 23-0. They had a struggling quarterback that looked like he was on his way to the bench as he continued to do nothing well beside chew gum while he misread defenses.
There are always signs early in a game that a team won’t cover. For the Steeler’s, it started on the opening touchdown when the extra point went wide. Then, the defense looked lethargic and that continued for most of the night. Ben laid a couple of eggs, like he always does, with two picks but the Packer defense played well all night to keep them in the game.
Bettors started to get the feeling the Steeler’s were just going to play well enough to get the win and get out of there, with no regard for those who wanted them to win by more than 14 points. Hundley finally showed up and started throwing the ball well and making good decisions. He ended up with 245 yards and three touchdowns.
There was a glimmer of hope in the fourth quarter as the Steeler’s took a 7 point lead and gave people thoughts of getting the front door cover. But Hundley drove the team right back down the field methodically and tied the game at 28.
The only question now was, would the 4 team teasers lose too? That teaser action meant the Steelers only had to win the game by 1 or .5 if they had 13 points in their teasers, and the outright loss to the Pack was a real possibility all night long. The three team teasers getting 10 points was not going to win with a Steeler win by a field goal. When the bookies know the teasers are getting wrecked, they know it’s going to be a good night. But a total disaster for Steeler backers was avoided when Antonio Brown had an acrobatic catch on the sideline to set up the winning field.
In the end, almost all action tied to the Packers was graded as a winner. And Steeler fans were happy to get the win but upset they played ugly all night long. That’s not the kind of effort that will get them very far in the playoffs. Not the kind of effort the Patriots would have given as such a heavy chalk, as they were able to cover 17 earlier in the day against the division rival Dolphins.