After getting shredded by Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski in last Thursday's season opener, the Pittsburgh Steelers have some serious adjustments to make before Sunday's game against the San Francisco 49ers. But most experts think that the Steelers are up to the task.
NFL picks and predictions, 49ers vs. Steelers 2015: Pittsburgh expected to bounce back
The Steelers are the overwhelming choice to get their first win of the season.
Colin Kaepernick and Vernon Davis are both good players, but the Steelers shouldn't get torn apart by those two as badly as they did by the Patriots' duo. Gronkowski had 94 yards receiving and three touchdowns in New England's 28-21 victory, but for better or worse, there's no one else in the NFL quite like him.
Pittsburgh will have to find a way to stop Carlos Hyde, who ripped the Vikings for 168 yards and two touchdowns in the Niners' 20-3 win over Minnesota. New England only gained 80 yards on the ground in the opener, but with Brady completing passes at will, there wasn't much need to run the ball.
When Pittsburgh has the ball, they will need DeAngelo Williams to keep performing well in place of suspended Le'Veon Bell. Williams had 127 yards against a good New England run defense, but now he'll be facing a San Francisco defense that held Adrian Peterson to 31 yards on 10 carries Monday night.
In the minds of the experts, though, the Steelers are still a top team, and the Niners still have to show that they’ve been able to overcome a tumultuous offseason. All eight CBS experts are picking Pittsburgh to win the game.
It isn’t much different with our own panel, with the Steelers getting the nod on seven of the eight ballots.
| Ryan Van Bibber | Stephen White | Joel Thorman | David Fucillo | Danny Kelly | Matt Ufford | PFT Commenter | OddsShark | |
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