(Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images)
After tying the winless Lions, the Steelers will look to bounce back against the 5-4 Chargers this Sunday night in Los Angeles. The Steelers are now entering the tough part of their schedule. Five of the Steelers' last eight games are on the road. The Vikings are the only team that they'll face who currently has a losing record. Their next three games are against AFC opponents, and two of them are AFC North teams -- Bengals and Ravens. At 5-3-1, the next three games could be really telling if the Steelers are a legit playoff contender in the AFC.
According to Oddssharks.com, the Chargers are currently 5.5-point favorites against the Steelers, and the over/under is 47 points. The Chargers originally opened as 3.5-point home favorites, but uncertainty about Ben Roethlisberger’s status due to him being on the reserve/COVID-19 list has increased the line to 5.5. Minkah Fitzpatrick was also placed on the COVID list yesterday.
The Chargers are dealing with a COVID situation themselves, as outside linebacker Joey Bosa and defensive end Jerry Tillery were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list today. All four players -- Roethlisberger, Fitzpatrick, Tillery and Bosa's status for Sunday are unclear as of right now. However, Mike Tomlin said at his Tuesday press conference that he doesn't expect Fitzpatrick to play.
The Steelers are 2-6 against the spread in their last eight games, and the total has gone under in six of Pittsburgh's last nine games. The Steelers are 12-5 against the spread in their last 17 games against the Chargers.
All-time, the Steelers are 24-10 against the Chargers. Under Mike Tomlin, the Steelers are 5-2 against the Chargers, and Ben Roethlisberger is 4-3 in his career against Los Angeles/San Diego. The Steelers have won their last two games against the Chargers when playing on the West Coast, both of which were in prime time.