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Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl Predictions

Written by Jimmy Boyd

steelers-super-bowl No wonder why Philadelphia Eagles fans are so bitter about five NFC Championship Game appearances and a Super Bowl appearance this decade. It has to be infuriating to share a state with the envy of all NFL football franchises. With a win over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game, the Pittsburgh Steelers make their seventh appearance in a Super Bowl when they meet the Arizona Cardinals in Tampa Bay, Florida on February 1, 2009. The Pittsburgh Steelers are listed at -7 favorites with the total set at 46.5 at Bookmaker.

The Steelers have won five Super Bowl titles in the history of the franchise. They won four in six seasons from 1974 to 1979 and there latest came in the 2005 season when they became the first sixth seed in NFL history to win the Super Bowl, defeating the Seattle Seahawks 21-10. The Steelers are back again and ready to add to their legacy.

It appeared to be a difficult task for the Steelers to even win their division, let alone make it to the Super Bowl, as they faced the toughest schedule in the NFL this season. While the offense struggled behind a banged up line and quarterback, the defense picked up the slack every step of the way. If the old saying is indeed true that “defense wins championships”, then the Steelers have to be a shoe in. Pittsburgh boasts the NFL’s No. 1 ranked defense in three of four major categories. Pittsburgh has the league’s best overall defense, allowing only 237.3 total yards per game. It has the NFL’s best passing defense, giving up only 157.1 yards per game through the air. And it also has the best scoring defense in the league, allowing only 13.9 points per game. The one major category where the Steelers are not No. 1, they are ranked No. 2. Pittsburgh has the NFL’s second best run defense, permitting only 80.2 yards per game. It was certainly the New York Giants defense which won last year’s Super Bowl as their ferocious pass rush slowed down Tom Brady and the high powered Patriots passing attack. The Steelers will have to depend on their pass rush to do a better job against Kurt Warner and the Cardinals passing attack than their Keystone State rivals did in the NFC Championship Game. Warner was 21 of 28 for 279 yards and four touchdowns.

While defense wins championships, the offense still has to do its part. The Giants offense didn’t do much in last year’s Super Bowl but it made big plays at critical junctures. Steelers QB Big Ben Roethlisberger has been in this spot before and won, but part of him likely wants to forget that game. Roethlisberger had one of the worst passing games of his career, completing just 9 of 21 passes for 123 yards and two interceptions. His passer rating of 22.6 was the lowest in Super Bowl history by a winning quarterback. While Big Ben has not had the kind of season he did a year ago statistically, he has a knack for making big plays in big games and I don’t expect him to put together such a sour performance in this Super Bowl. If you like Pittsburgh to win its sixth Super Bowl and cover the number in the process, bet the Steelers at -7 at Bookmaker and receive up to a 20 percent cash sign up bonus.

Each of the last four Super Bowls have gone under the number, and while the over is normally the popular Super Bowl play for most bettors, you may want to take a second look at the under because of this Pittsburgh defense. It is worth noting that the Steelers have not been faced with a total this high all season. With both of their playoff games going over and with them going up against a high scoring Cardinals team, odds makers are expecting a few extra points to be scored, but this many? Jimmy will have your answer come Super Bowl Sunday.

Beat the Super Bowl odds on February 1, 2009 with Jimmy Boyd’s Award Winning Super Bowl Picks. Rest east knowing you’ve found the best Super Bowl betting option on the planet.

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