Steelers Texans Betting – Steelers Still Searching For Identity Heading Into Showdown With Texans

Would the real Pittsburgh Steelers please stand up? After getting dominated by the Baltimore Ravens in week one, the Steelers rebounded with a much stronger performance by blowing away the Seattle Seahawks in a 24-0 win at home. That set the expectations high for a week three Sunday Night Football matchup against the Indianapolis Colts, yet even with Peyton Manning watching from the sidelines the Steelers only narrowly edged out a 23-20 win, hitting a game-winning field goal in the dying seconds to prevail. Pittsburgh is set to face its second AFC South opponent in as many weeks with a visit to the Houston Texans this Sunday, as they battle a much stronger sports betting opponent on short rest.

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Houston Texans
Sunday October 2, 2011 – 1:00 PM ET
Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas
NFL Betting Lines: Houston Texans – 4

The Texans threw everything that they had at the New Orleans Saints in a 40-33 loss last week, and despite failing to remain undefeated there are still a ton of positives that they can take from that game. Houston now returns home after back-to-back road games with the chance to make a push with consecutive games against AFC opponents, beginning with the Steelers.

NFL Betting Preview: Pittsburgh Steelers

Similar to their week one loss to the Ravens, the Steelers did a lot of things to hurt themselves against Indianapolis last week, and the story could have been very different if Colts’ quarterback Curtis Painter was a little more careful with the ball. Pittsburgh won’t have the luxury of being able to turn the ball over the way they did against Indianapolis this week, and will need the offense to play a controlled, possession-battle style game. How the Steelers defend the Texans will be another crucial matchup, as their No. 1 ranking against the pass could be skewed by the sports betting bonus fact that they have played Seattle and Indianapolis in consecutive weeks.

NFL Betting Preview: Houston Texans

Matt Schaub and the Texans will undoubtedly provide Pittsburgh with a tougher matchup, even if running back Arian Foster is not healthy enough to start. The tandem of Ben Tate and Derrick Ward have been very good this season, and Houston will likely look to spread the Steelers out the way that the Green Bay Packers did in the Super Bowl in an effort to beat them through the air. Schaub has already thrown for 823 and six touchdowns, and Andre Johnson will provide nightmare matchups for Pittsburgh’s defense. The Texans will need to find a way to get pressure on Roethlisberger without injured defensive end Mario Williams, and if they can then it could lead to more turnovers.

NFL Betting Preview: Outlook & Pick

The Steelers have struggled mightily on the road this season, and will now face arguably their toughest test against a talented Houston team looking to pull away in the AFC South and rebound from a tough road loss to the Saints. The Texans have the weapons on offense to make things difficult for the Pittsburgh defense, and unless Roethlisberger and company can keep up this could get ugly.