Steelers vs Browns Picks & Odds: AFC North Lead Up For Grabs Thursday Night

The Cleveland Browns (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS) will try to break a five-game skid against the spread as favorites when they host the Pittsburgh Steelers (1-1, 1-0-1) as small home chalk at sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark for the Week 3 Thursday Night Football matchup. The Browns are coming off a 31-30 loss to the New York Jets as 6.5-point home favorites last Sunday, dropping them to 3-2 straight up in their last five in that role as well.

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Steelers vs Browns Sportsbook Odds

Both of these teams won their season openers on the road in Week 1 before falling at home in Week 2, so it will be interesting to see if those trends continue here. Right now, bettors do not believe that will happen, pushing Cleveland up to -4.5 in early wagering action from the opener of -3.

Pittsburgh’s offense sputtered in a 17-14 loss to the New England Patriots as a 3-point home underdog last week, failing to score a touchdown until early in the fourth quarter and then adding a two-point conversion for the PUSH.

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Pittsburgh’s Quarterback Situation Worth Watching In Week 3

The Steelers have not seen what they were hoping for since they named Mitch Trubisky starting quarterback and one of five team captains prior to Week 1.

Rookie first-round draft pick Kenny Pickett is waiting in the wings, and they need to be at least thinking about making a switch if the offensive struggles continue Thursday night.

Trubisky has yet to throw for over 200 yards or more than one touchdown in each of the first two games, and the offense must score more, especially with the defense lacking reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year T.J. Watt, who resides on injured reserve and will miss at least four games.

Pittsburgh’s rushing attack has also not fared well, with second-year running back Najee Harris totaling 25 carries for just 72 yards through the first two games.

Cleveland’s Week 2 Collapse Shows Poor Time Management

There were a few second-half collapses in Week 2, and the Browns had one of the worst after leading 30-17 with 1:55 remaining in the game.

Jets veteran quarterback Joe Flacco threw two touchdowns in a span of a minute to pull off the upset for the visitors, as the hosts failed to milk the clock enough and could have easily avoided that loss with better time management.

Flacco ended up completing 26 of 44 passes for 307 yards with four touchdowns for New York while Cleveland blew an otherwise fine rushing effort with 37 carries for 184 yards and three touchdowns, all scored by Nick Chubb.

However, Chubb would have been better off staying in bounds on the team’s final scoring drive to take time off the clock, and that kept the team from improving to 2-0 for the first time since 1993.

Steelers: Keys To Victory

Trubisky must step up and prove himself as the unquestioned starter in this spot. His job should be on the line, and there is no excuse for him not to perform well after seeing what Flacco did against this Browns defense. It would help if Harris could get going too, but this one is definitely on Trubisky to win and get the team to 2-0 on the road this season.

Browns: Keys To Victory

Cleveland’s meltdown at the end of its last game was obviously costly because it resulted in a bad loss. The Browns can bounce back, though, by beating the Steelers and jumping back into first place in the division.

Their running game is strong, and Chubb and Kareem Hunt simply need to make better decisions moving forward. If they can produce vs a Watt-less Pittsburgh defense like they have in the first two games, a cover is very likely.

NFL Computer Pick: Browns -5

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