Oddsmakers shifted the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints from the role of favorites to major underdogs as injuries to starting quarterbacks caused significant swings to the team’s 2019 projections.
Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is done for the season. An MRI exam revealed Roethlisberger would need elbow surgery as the 0-2 Steelers prepare to visit the San Francisco 49ers in Week 3. Roethlisberger was 0-2 for only the second time in his career. He was injured in a non-contact play in the first half of Sunday’s loss against the Seattle Seahawks.
The Steelers were listed as a pick ’em at San Francisco, but moments after news broke that he would miss the rest of the season, Pittsburgh was listed at plus-6 at William Hill and the game went offline at most books, including FanDuel.
Pittsburgh could also be without lead running back James Conner (knee).
The Saints are headed to Seattle without quarterback Drew Brees due to a thumb injury that will require surgery. Brees is expected to miss 6-8 weeks.
New Orleans was a 1-point favorite at Seattle prior to Week 2, but was listed at plus-4.5 on Monday morning moments after news of Brees’ status changed.
FanDuel dropped the Steelers’ Super Bowl odds to 60-1, putting them in the company of the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (also 60-1). FanDuel had not shifted futures bets for the Saints as of noon Monday, projecting New Orleans as NFC South champions and No. 2 in the NFC in conference odds behind only the Los Angeles Rams.
The Saints were listed at 12-1 to be Super Bowl champs, behind New England, Kansas City and the Rams.