NFL Betting – Pittsburgh Steelers at Los Angeles Chargers

The Pittsburgh Steelers have never had a losing season under Mike Tomlin. Part of the reason was the spectacular play of Ben Roethlisberger. The quarterback position in the Steel City has been cursed this year and that could potentially put an end to the streak. Big Ben was put on the shelf after two games and it looks like Mason Rudolph won’t be available for the Week 6 matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers. That leaves undrafted rookie Devlin Hodges on the top of the depth chart. The Bolts will take anything at this point following a loss to the Broncos last week, leaving them behind Oakland in the AFC West standings. The current NFL betting line has the home team as a 6.5-point favorite.

Pittsburgh Steelers at Los Angeles Chargers

Date and Time: Sunday, October 13, 2019, 8:20 p.m. ET

Location: Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, CA

Opening NFL Odds: Los Angeles -5, O/U 43.5

Steelers at Chargers TV Coverage: NBC

Odds Analysis

The Chargers hit the board as a 5-point home favorite and they were hit hard at the betting window with the prospect of playing against an undrafted rookie who was on the Steelers practice squad at the start of the year. That action drove the spread to LA -7 and we could see the number go higher, though oddsmakers will play with the juice to try and even things out before going off a key number. The total wasn’t high when it surfaced. In fact the opening 43.5 is the lowest for any game for each team. The number was wagered down even further to its current 41.5.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The AFC North is a train wreck this season, so there’s still hope the Steelers can put a run together despite their 1-4 record. That loss to Baltimore last week hurt in the standings and on the field when Rudolph exited with a concussion after a brutal helmet-to-helmet hit that appeared to knock him out before he hit the turf. Needless to say, he didn’t return. And he barely got off the field, which was even more embarrassing.

Trading Josh Dobbs doesn’t look like a good move now, but hindsight is 20/20 as they say. Just when Rudolph was getting comfortable running the offense he goes down, leaving Hodges in the biggest spot of his career. He really can’t lose when you think about it. Undrafted out of FCS Samford, he was signed as a camp arm then released only to join the practice squad, bringing memories of Kurt Warner. He was elevated to the 53-man roster when Roethlisberger went down.

Hodges looked calm and confident last week completing 7 of 9 for 68 yards with a 21-yard run that got the Steelers in field goal position to take the lead. A JuJu Smith Schuster turnover in overtime allowed the Ravens to kick the game-winning field goal, however the Steelers covered the 3.5-point closing spread for their second straight ATS victory.

Los Angeles Chargers

The Chargers are known for their slow starts and they haven’t disappointed this season. They fell to 2-3 with last week’s 20-13 loss to the previously winless Broncos, failing to cover as a 4-point home favorite to go 1-3-1 ATS. What’s more disturbing is how the offense operated. Melvin Gordon rejoined the team after his early-season holdout and he should have taken another week off.

The Bolts failed to score a touchdown for the first time in 56 games, though they came close. Twice the Chargers moved inside the Broncos 5-yard line only to come away with a pair of red zone turnovers. Austin Ekeler fumbled the ball out of the end zone at the end of the first half and one of Philip Rivers’ two picks was snared in the Denver end zone. It wasn’t a good day for the offense, which managed just 246 total yards. And the loss of center Mike Pouncey to a neck injury will certainly make things interesting up front.

Defensively the Chargers have been solid and they have disruptive pass rushers who can make life miserable for Hodges. They have to get the Steelers in passing downs to get sacks and they weren’t very good last week, allowing the Broncos to amass nearly 200 yards on the ground. If the Bolts can limit James Connor and contain Hodges in the run game, their chances of winning increase dramatically.

Bet Steelers at Chargers at BookMaker.eu

The Chargers killed themselves last week and you know that’s not sitting well with Rivers, who was part of the problem. Gordon was a non-factor last week in his return to the field and I expect he’ll be more of a threat this week. The Bolts need to pick up the pace offensively and Pittsburgh has shown cracks on that side of the ball, which is why I’m leaning toward a home team cover.

NFL Score Prediction: Los Angeles 26, Pittsburgh 17

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