Steelers slightly favored vs Seahawks in Pittsburgh’s preseason opener

The Pittsburgh Steelers have their first preseason game of 2022 on Saturday at home against the Seattle Seahawks. Here are the odds for the game.

We know it’s just preseason, but it’s hard not to make a big deal out of live-action NFL football when we’ve gone so long without it. On Saturday, August 13th, the Pittsburgh Steelers will host the Seattle Seahawks at Acrisure Stadium (that still doesn’t sound right).

In the past, NFL teams used to play four preseason games. However, when the league went to a 17-game schedule, one exhibition game was taken away. Still, these next three games should give us a good insight into what we are looking at for the upcoming season.

As a Steelers fan, I don’t remember the last time that the preseason had this much to get excited about. Pittsburgh drafted a quarterback in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft, and all eyes will be on Kenny Pickett to see how he performs on the NFL stage. In addition, the Steelers are suddenly loaded with young, talented skill players and we will anxiously await to see how they develop.

WynnBET released their odds for the first full week of NFL exhibition games. For Pittsburgh’s first contest of 2022, they have the Steelers as 3.0-point home favorites over the visiting Seahawks. Pittsburgh has a moneyline of -165 and the point total for this contest is set at just 33.5.

What to watch in Steelers vs Seahawks preseason game

If you are hoping to see a hard-hitting slugfest between starters, don’t hold your breath. This first preseason game will resemble Week 2 of the preseason from previous years. High-profile starters might not even see the field at all. However, that doesn’t mean this contest isn’t worth watching.

Obviously, the biggest thing to look for against Seattle this week is the battle at the quarterback position for the Steelers. Who will get the nod as the starter? How will each of the top three quarterbacks perform? Will Chris Oladokun get any playing time at all? How will Kenny Pickett look?

Based on what we have seen so far at Steelers training camp, it seems likely that Mitch Trubisky will get the first look with the starters this week, followed by Mason Rudolph, then Kenny Pickett. However, it remains to be seen just how much playing time Mike Tomlin will want each player to get in the first preseason game.

Pickett didn’t have the start to camp that fans had hoped for, as he struggled to connect with his receivers and held onto the football for far too long. Over the past week, however, Pickett really looked like he was getting more comfortable, and some of his teammates noticed a difference in his confidence.

There will be plenty of things to look for as the Steelers host the Seahawks in their first exhibition action, but none are more important than the battle at quarterback. These next three games are going to be huge in determining the depth chart to begin the 2022 season.