The Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers rivalry games have been won inside the trenches over the past few years, and that’ll likely remain the case when the two teams face off for Thursday night football to kick off Week 3 of the NFL season.
Not only do the Steelers and Browns already rely on their defense and running games, but the weather forecast in Cleveland for the game will prove to make the passing attack more difficult for both teams.
Steelers vs. Browns Weather Report
On Thursday morning, Cleveland was treated to a usual, brisk fall day with cloudy skies and chilly conditions. For now, the rain is supposed to hold off for the Thursday Night Football game, but the wind should persist throughout the day.
Currently, wind gusts are well above 20 mph, and according to The Weather Channel, those numbers are supposed to hold through the Steelers – Browns matchup.
The weather obstacle is probably the last thing that the Steelers want to hear right now given that they’re already having enough issues putting up points.
During Week 2, quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and the Steelers offense struggled mightily when facing Bill Belichick’s New England Patriots defense, losing the game 17-14 in Pittsburgh.
“I’m going to exercise appropriate patience and continue to teach and ask the guys to continue to learn in an effort to continue to push this train down the track and get better,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said on Monday when asked whether he was happy with the team’s play calling. “I think that if anyone is sitting here on Monday in Week 2 of this thing feeling happy, they’re probably wrong or misinformed.”
Given the harsh weather conditions, the under has emerged as a popular play for Thursday Night Football, even at a low 38.5 mark right now.
Under Hitting at Historic Rate in 2022
Per BetMGM’s John Ewing, unders have gone 22-10 straight up so far on the season, including 6-1 during primetime games. The only night game that has gone over the total was Monday’s matchup between the Tennessee Titans and Buffalo Bills, where the Bills offense put up 41 points in the win.
This is the biggest start for NFL unders in nearly two decades. One would have to go all the way back to 1996, when the under was 21-8-1 through the first two weeks of the season, to find anything close to what the NFL is experiencing this year.
Given the current trend around the NFL and the weather conditions expected in Cleveland on Thursday night, it feels like the under 38.5 (per DraftKings) should be a safe play for Thursday Night Football.
