Denver Broncos vs. Pittsburgh Steelers 2020: Prediction, Spread, Odds For NFL Week 2

After being fortunate enough to stay competitive in their season opener, the Denver Broncos are headed for a tough matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 2.

Pittsburgh kicked off the NFL’s annual “Monday Night Football” doubleheader with a comfortable 26-16 win on the road over the New York Giants. In the night’s second contest, Denver fell victim to a late field goal in a 16-14 loss to the Tennessee Titans, though the final score doesn’t tell the whole story.

The Broncos could’ve easily been defeated by two scores, but they managed to stay in the game because Titans kicker Stephen Gostkowski missed three field goals and an extra point. Unless Pittsburgh has similar self-inflicted wounds, Denver won’t pull off the upset on the road.

Since Peyton Manning retired after the 2016 Super Bowl, the Broncos have finished in the bottom half of the league in yards per play each season. Second-year quarterback Drew Lock still has a long way to go before proving that he can make Denver’s offense a potent unit. Lock had decent numbers with a 95.0 passer rating and no interceptions in the opener, but he didn’t make a whole lot happen with 216 yards and 6.5 yards per attempt.

On Sunday, Lock will face a defense that has a chance to be the NFL’s best. Pittsburgh ranked third in opponents’ yards per play a season ago. They held the Giants to 291 yards of offense and stifled Saquon Barkley to the tune of six yards on 15 carries.

Expect the Steelers to dare Lock to defeat them the way Pittsburgh did to Daniel Jones in Week 1. Under constant pressure, Jones was sacked three times and threw a pair of interceptions.

Jones was pressured on 26 of his 48 dropbacks, the most of any Week 1 quarterback, according to Pro Football Focus.

The Steelers are favored by 7.5 points at home, according to the betting odds compiled by OddsShark, and the over/under is 40.5. Eight of Pittsburgh’s last nine games have gone under the total.

Winning a low-scoring defensive battle will be difficult for the Broncos at Heinz Field. Vaunted pass rusher Von Miller and cornerback A.J. Bouye, two of Denver’s top defensive players, have been placed on injured reserve over the last two weeks.

Ben Roethlisberger passed his first test, throwing for 229 yards and a 117.8 passer rating in his first game since suffering an elbow injury that ended his 2019 season.

Lock and the Broncos went 4-1 down the stretch of last season. Denver’s only loss during that span was a 23-3 drubbing in Kansas City.

Sunday’s game in Pittsburgh could be reminiscent of that Broncos’ loss.

Prediction ATS: Pittsburgh over Denver, 26-10