The Carolina Panthers travel to Heinz Field this weekend to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFL preseason finale for both teams, and as week four of exhibition play goes, this is the last dress rehearsal before the games do matter. Carolina earned their first win this past Saturday against the Tennessee Titans 15-7, after combining for that many points in consecutive losses to open their preseason schedule against the Baltimore Ravens and New York Jets. On the other hand, Pittsburgh won their first two games of exhibition play before losing to the Denver Broncos week three. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will get on the field for some reps with the starting offense one more time before taking a seat for at leastthe first four games of the regular season to serve his suspension.

NFL Betting: Carolina Panthers @ Pittsburgh Steelers

Why To Bet On The Panthers?

Despite playing well, neither Matt Moore or college football betting star Jimmy Clausen have thrown for a touchdown this preseason, a trend that the Panthers would undoubtedly hope to see end before next week’s regular season debut against the New York Giants. DeAngelo Williams has managed just 3.6 yards per carry during exhibition play, but should only get in for one series if any, and is largely not a factor for this contest. Clausen will get an extended look, and will try to show head coach John Fox and his staff that he is ready to contribute immediately as a football betting rookie.

Why To Bet On The Steelers?

The Steelers have shown a bit of an edge during this preseason, perhaps angered by the prognosticators that have them once again taking a back seat to the Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC North. Roethlisberger is expected to get in at least a couple of quarters of work, the final game action he will see before sitting down with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on Friday to discuss whether his six-game suspension will be reduced down to four. Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin is expected to rest or give limited snaps to the majority of his starters, but this is a deep and talented roster that should come to play in front of its home crowd. Dennis Dixon and Byron Leftwich have both shown flashes in exhibition play. Look for Dixon to impress as he proves to Tomlin that he is more than capable of backing up Leftwich once the season begins.

How The Game Will Play Out?

he Panthers’ offense has looked stagnant through exhibition play, and when you consider that the most explosive playmaker on a roster that lacks depth will not see much time, it’s difficult to project Carolina putting up much points against a Steelers’ defense. All three Pittsburgh quarterbacks will likely see time, and when you consider how important these snaps are to all three for different reasons, its reasonable to think that they will do good things.

Panthers Steelers Betting Pick: Steelers

Posted on September 1st, 2010 by admin
Filed under: NFL football betting