The Pittsburgh Steelers entered the week as underdogs against the Cleveland Browns. Following the news of QB Deshaun Watson’s season-ending shoulder injury, they might be the favorites Sunday.
From a betting perspective, VSIN shows the odds have heavily swung in the Steelers’ favor. The line now has it as a pick ’em or, according to some books, Pittsburgh as the favorite for this game.
The over/under has also dropped several points since the opening line. The reasons are obvious. Wednesday morning, the Browns released the shocking news that Watson was out for the year due to a severe shoulder injury suffered in the second quarter of Sunday’s win over the Baltimore Ravens. Watson managed to finish the game, going 14-for-14 in the second-half comeback, but complained of the pain during a Monday MRI for his injured ankle. Once the injury was discovered and due to the risk of further injury if he tried to play through it, Watson was ruled out for the season.
In his place, the Browns will start rookie QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson. A fifth-round pick out of UCLA, “DTR” as they call him had a great summer and preseason, giving the coaching staff enough confidence to trade veteran QB Josh Dobbs to the Arizona Cardinals. He’s started one game this year, an emergency appearance against the Baltimore Ravens, and predictably struggled with three interceptions in a 28-3 loss. With Watson still injured earlier in the year, the team turned to veteran P.J. Walker. Though the Browns found ways to win, it was in spite of Walker, who threw just one touchdown and five interceptions across five games and two official starts.
While Watson hadn’t played well overall this year, he was beginning to hit his stride and turning to a rookie like Thompson-Robinson is an obvious blow. The Browns are now without their franchise quarterback and running back, losing Nick Chubb for the season in Week Two against the Steelers.
Though things look more favorable for Pittsburgh, Sunday’s game is far from a guaranteed win. The Browns have an elite defense that will be all the more determined to make plays. And AFC North matchups usually go down to the wire, especially when the Steelers are involved.
