Back low scoring slugfest between Titans and Steelers Thursday night

Words and phrases such as gritty, old school, throwback, and slugfest are all words I’ve heard used to promote Thursday Night Football between the Titans and Steelers. I couldn’t pick better words myself, as the playstyles of these teams matches that of a different era.

Tennessee and Pittsburgh rank 23rd and 29th in points per game, respectively. Both have young quarterbacks and run offenses that rank near the bottom in yards per game.

It’s because of these reasons and more reasons below that I’m advising to bet the under on points in this game. You can sign-up with the FanDuel promo code as a new player and wager under 36.5 points for odds of -105.

(Thursday 8:15 p.m. ET, Amazon Prime Video)

Few units in the NFL face as much weekly criticism as the Steelers offenses has in the two and a half seasons under Matt Canada. Pittsburgh has notoriously yet to achieve 400 yards in a game with Canada as the play caller.

Canada deserves a heavy dose of blame, but there are other areas to blame too. The offense ranks 28th in rushing with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren averaging just 3.7 and 3.9 yards per carry respectively. Each back has found the end zone just once this year.

The offensive line is another issue with the Steelers. They struggle to create holes in the run game and are a middle of the road pass blocking team. Kenny Pickett has also regressed with a lower completion percentage and QBR. He still has just 12 passing touchdowns in 20 starts.

But the defense still has T.J. Watt playing at an All-Pro level. Watt has a nact for causing key takeaways or getting a crucial sack seemingly every week. Pittsburgh ranks second in takeaways per game and gets Cam Heyward back from IR. However, they’ll be without star safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.

» READ MORE: A.J. Brown surging in offensive player of the year odds during his record-breaking streak

On the flip side, you’d think the Titans are a dangerous team if you only saw the Titans offense last week with Will Levis. It can’t be argued Levis looked poised and played well. Looking past his four touchdowns, he did things you want out of a rookie quarterback like looking to his second read and not turning the ball over.

Although Levis will certainly be one of the most talked about figures of the game, Derrick Henry remains the engine that the Titans offense wants steering them. Henry is noticeably starting to feel the effects of over 2,000 touches from scrimmage in his age 29 season.

But he’s still on pace for 1,000 yards and is averaging the same amount of yards per carry as 2022. Rookie Tyjae Spears has helped manage Henry’s workload by surprisingly putting up 5.8 yards per run and contributing in the passing game as well.

Defensively, this is a unit with continuity and talent. Their statistics are still respectable but there’s no question they’ve taken a step back this year compared to past seasons. They’ve also played just one game since trading longtime defensive anchor Kevin Byard and will still have newfound kinks to work out.

Both offenses have players that can light it up in the box score and highlight reel department. Henry was already mentioned, but you can bank on the likes of DeAndre Hopkins and George Pickens to put their stamps on this game.

As talented as those three players are, it all comes back to quarterback. Pickett has thrown a touchdown in just 11 games and has just one game with more than one touchdown.

As for Levis, I’d be stunned if the Titans’ poor offensive line wins against Watt, Alex Highsmith, and a Steelers defense that always brings the heat at home. Joey Porter Jr. starting in place of Levi Wallace will provide a significant boost to Pittsburgh’s secondary too.

The Inquirer is not an online gambling operator, or a gambling site. We provide this information about sports betting for entertainment purposes only.