The Pittsburgh Steelers finished last season with a record of 9-8 which led to a 3^rd place finish in the AFC North and missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2019 NFL season.

Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished last season with a record of 8-9 which led to an NFC Division Championship and a spot in the NFC Playoffs, however, the Buccaneers were eliminated in the Wild Card round by the Dallas Cowboys by a score of 14-31.

BookMaker has the Pittsburgh Steeler listed as .5-point favorites on the road against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and has set the total for the over/under plays at 38.5 points. Which team will come away with a win in their first preseason game this season? Let’s take a look at how these teams finished last season.

Pittsburgh Steelers Team Preview

The Pittsburgh Steelers finished last season in 3^rd place in the AFC North and missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2019 NFL season after finishing with a record of 9-8. The Steelers finished 10-6-1 ATS overall, 6-3 ATS on the road, and 4-2 ATS as a favorite last season.

Offensively, the Pittsburgh Steelers ranked 26^th in points in the NFL with an average of 18.12 points per game. Pittsburgh ranked 16^th in rushing yards with an average of 122.18 rushing yards per game. The Steelers ranked 24^th in passing yards per game with an average of 200.53 yards.

Defensively, the Steelers ranked 10^th in points allowed with an average of 20.35 points allowed per game. Pittsburgh ranked 9^th in rushing yards allowed per game with an average of 108.12 rushing yards. The Pittsburgh Steelers ranked 19^th in passing yards allowed with an average of 222.29 passing yards allowed per game.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Team Preview

Even though the Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished last season with a losing record of 8-9, they still won the NFC South and earned a spot in the NFC Playoffs, however, Tampa Bay was eliminated by the Dallas Cowboys in the Wild Card round by a score of 14-31. The Buccaneers were 4-13-1 ATS overall, 1-7-1 ATS at home, and 0-4 ATS as an underdog last season.

Offensively, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ranked 25^th in points in the NFL with an average of 18.17 points per game. Tampa Bay ranked 32^nd in rushing yards with an average of 75.56 rushing yards per game. The Buccaneers ranked 2^nd in passing yards per game with an average of 273.33 passing yards.

Defensively, the Buccaneers ranked 15^th in points allowed with an average of 21.61 points allowed per game. Tampa Bay ranked 15^th in rushing yards allowed with an average of 121.22 rushing yards allowed per game. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers ranked 9^th in passing yards allowed per game with an average of 208.67 yards.

Series Trends and Game Pick

Pittsburgh has won six of the last eight games in the series and has won by an average score of 21.12 to 15.12 while going 6-2 ATS in those matchups. The Steelers have won two of the last three games in the series and have won by an average score of 24.67 to 24 while going 2-1 ATS in those contests.

The under has hit in five of the last eight games in the series with the teams combining for an average of 36.24 points per game in those contests. The over has hit in two of the last three games in the series with the teams combining for an average of 48.67 points per game in those matchups.

Pittsburgh is the better team this season and has been the better team in the series, winning six of the last eight and two of the last three games. The Steelers are 6-2 ATS in the last eight and 2-1 ATS in the last three games in the series. As a result, I am taking the Pittsburgh Steelers -0.5 for this matchup on BookMaker.