NFL Expert Picks, Week 10: Experts are all-in on the Steelers over the Lions

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Detroit Lions are slated to face off in Week 10 of the 2021 regular season, and there are a lot of narratives between these two teams. For the Lions, they are wondering if this will be the week, coming off their bye, that they finally notch a win in the 2021 season, while the Steelers are a team trying to forge a new identity as they look to extend their winning streak to five games after their Week 9 win over the Chicago Bears

For those who follow the current betting lines, the Steelers opened as 9-point favorites, and, according to DraftKings Sportsbook, that line has moved from 9-points to 8-points.

(Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.)

At this point, it is time to check in and see who the pundits who call themselves experts like in this showdown in Pittsburgh this Monday night.

For those new to this article, there are two types of experts, when it comes to NFL picks. There are those who just pick the overall winner, and those who expound on their picks and give a reason for their prediction.

As for the former of the above types of experts, there are many sites who have their experts just plug in a winner and move on with their day. Of those sites, like Yahoo! and ESPN, they are all-in on the Steelers to beat Detroit at home on Sunday.

As for the experts who actually put some thoughts, and explanation behind their picks, like Pete Prisco of CBS Sports, the

The Lions are winless and coming off the bye, which means they are rested. The Steelers are playing on a short week. Advantage Detroit. That’s the only one. The Steelers almost blew their game to the Bears on Monday night. They won’t blow this one or nearly lose it. This will be bad.

Pick: Steelers 28, Lions 10

As for Jacob Camenker from The Sporting News, he sees the Steelers as one of the best bets for Week 10. Here’s why:

Steelers (-9) vs. Lions

Betting the Steelers as more than a touchdown favorite may seem a bit risky. Their five wins this season have come by eight or fewer points, after all.

That said, the Lions are the weakest competition that the Steelers have faced to date, and Pittsburgh’s strengths match up very well with Detroit’s weaknesses.

The Lions have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL. They are allowing an average of 134.5 yards per game, which is good for the fourth-most in the NFL. They are also one of two teams that has allowed 16 TDs to RBs this season. The other is the Jets.

The Steelers’ offense runs through Najee Harris, and the talented rookie back is averaging 23.8 touches and 103.8 scrimmage yards per game. He should be able to find the end-zone against this defense which should give Pittsburgh good scoring potential. He’ll also set up some play action throws, so that’s an advantage to the Steelers’ offense.

Defensively, the Steelers should have an advantage as well. The Lions have struggled against strong pass rushes and have allowed Jared Goff to be sacked 23 times in eight games. Pittsburgh just managed to rattle the hyper-mobile Justin Fields and sack him three times. Goff may have better protection, but his lacking mobility could lead to a big day for the Steelers.

The Steelers’ defense has allowed just 19 points per game during their four-game winning streak, too, while the Lions have averaged just 16.8 points per game this season and 14.4 points per game since Week 2. So, Pittsburgh’s offense should only need to rack up about 24 points to cover here — if all goes well on defense.

Maybe the Lions will have a little extra juice coming out of their bye week, but their team is just so light on talent. It’s hard to imagine them finding success against a good defense, so rolling with Pittsburgh here is a fine move.

Vinnie Iyer of The Sporting News also likes the Steelers at home this Sunday.

The Lions will hope to play hard enough to get a win at some point after their bye. That’s not happening here. The Steelers will run all over them with rookie Najee Harris and there’s also no one on the back end to stop their wideouts from making big plays. On the other side, T.J. Watt and friends will clean up plenty when teeing off on Jared Goff.

Pick: Steelers win 27-14 and cover the spread.

These are just a few sites who make weekly NFL picks. When you think about all those sites not listed above, this is when we turn to our friends at NFL Pick Watch, a site dedicated to tracking NFL expert picks by the week. They take all expert picks and put them into an easy-to-read graph for fans to enjoy. When it comes to the Steelers vs. Lions game, 94% of NFL experts like the Steelers to hold serve at home Sunday.

What do you think about the upcoming game? Will the experts have it right? Or are they way off? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below, and be sure to stay tuned to BTSC for the latest news and notes surrounding the black and gold as they prepare for the Lions in Week 10.