The Reuters’ NFL Lineman is back for another week, and he doesn’t care for the chances of the Kansas City Chiefs one bit. For those unfamiliar, the column is a look at a handful of the betting lines around the NFL for that Sunday and some surefire picks to make in the midst of it. For the Chiefs, the Steelers are already 10.5 point favorites and even then, the Lineman (as now unnamed) believes the Chiefs will lose by quite a bit more than that.
I almost liked this one for my Pick of the Week and I’m not sure exactly why I didn’t because this smells like a blowout. The well-rested Steelers roll into Arrowhead off a bye to take on the Chiefs, who are on a short week and still reeling from a 34-4 thrashing at the hands of the Patriots on Monday Night. Tyler Palko, making his second start in the place of injured Matt Cassel, was unable to impress against a non-threatening New England defense and now faces the menacing Steelers, who are second in total defence (280 ypg) and third best against the pass (183 ypg).
After a stuttering start to the season, the Chiefs had looked poised to take charge of the AFC West reeling off four straight wins but have been unable to weather the loss of Cassel scoring just one touchdown in three consecutive losses. Not all is perfect in the Pittsburgh camp with Ben Roethlisberger expected to get the start in KC despite a broken right thumb. If Big Ben is good to go, Mike Wallace is his favorite target, the speedy wideout fourth in receiving yards with 922 on 53 catches.
Arrowhead is hostile territory for visitors and has not been a happy hunting ground for the Steelers, who have lost their last two visits to KC. But the Steelers bag a big win here. Take the Steelers and give up the 10.5.
The Steelers game comes after the Chiefs being blown out by 31 points by the Patriots, and this season has already featured quite a few blowouts with the Chiefs on the losing end. It’s not unheard of that the Steelers could cover the spread and walk away big winners.