HOF Notes - Steelers vs. Vikings
VegasInsider.com
Pittsburgh Steelers
Head Coach: Mike Tomlin
Quarterback Rotation: Ben Roethlisberger, Bruce Gradkowski, Landry Jones, Tajh Boyd (Rookie)
Mike Tomlin began his career with the Steelers dominating in preseason play, owning a 19-6 SU and 14-10-1 ATS record from 2007 through 2012. However, Pittsburgh has struggled in exhibition action the last two seasons, going 1-7 SU/ATS, while the 'under' has cashed six times in this span.
When Tomlin started in '07, the Steelers were a team to back in preseason openers, winning and covering four straight. Pittsburgh has gone backwards since 2011, losing four consecutive Game 1's in preseason action, while scoring a combined 29 points in the past two openers.
Minnesota Vikings
Head Coach: Mike Zimmer
Quarterback Rotation: Teddy Bridgewater, Shaun Hill, Taylor Heinicke (Rookie), Mike Kafka
The Vikings struggled in the preseason prior to Mike Zimmer arriving on the scene last season. The former Bengals' defensive coordinator came out of the gate with a perfect 4-0 record in his 2014 preseason debut, along with a 3-1 ATS mark.
Minnesota stumbled in preseason openers from 2011-13, losing each time, but bounced back with a 10-6 victory over Oakland last August to cash as a three-point home favorite. Zimmer's defensive style slowed down opposing offenses in the preseason, yielding 12 points or less in three of four exhibition wins in 2014.
Preseason Coaching Stats
Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh - 20-13 SU, 15-17-1 ATS, 12-20-1 O/U
Mike Zimmer, Minnesota - 4-0 SU, 3-1 ATS, 1-3 O/U
Preseason Results - Last Two Years
Pittsburgh
2014 (1-3 SU, 1-3 ATS, 1-3 O/U)
Pittsburgh (+2.5, 36.5) 16 at N.Y. Giants 20
Pittsburgh (-1, 41) 19 vs. Buffalo 16
Pittsburgh (+3.5, 48) 21 at Philadelphia 31
Pittsburgh (-4, 37.5) 0 vs. Carolina 10
2013 (0-4 SU, 0-4 ATS, 1-3 O/U)
Pittsburgh (-2.5, 36) 13 vs. N.Y. Giants 18
Pittsburgh (+2.5, 39.5) 13 at Washington 24
Pittsburgh (-3, 40) 20 vs. Kansas City 26 (OT)
Pittsburgh (+3.5, 36) 10 at Carolina 25
Minnesota
2014 (4-0 SU, 3-1 ATS, 1-3 O/U)
Minnesota (-3, 38) 10 vs. Oakland 6
Minnesota (-4.5, 40) 30 vs. Arizona 28
Minnesota (+3, 45) 30 at Kansas City 12
Minnesota (+1.5, 42) 19 at Tennessee 3
2013 (1-3 SU, 1-3 ATS, 3-1 O/U)
Minnesota (-1, 35.5) 13 vs. Houston 27
Minnesota (+3.5, 43) 16 at Buffalo 20
Minnesota (+3, 39) 14 at San Francisco 34
Minnesota (+4, 39) 24 vs. Tennessee 23
Hall of Fame Game History & Trends
Recent Trends:
Pittsburgh beat New Orleans, 20-7 in the 2007 HOF game, going 3-2 all-time.
Minnesota has gone 2-1 in HOF game appearances, knocking off Seattle in 1997.
The 'under' has hit in three of the past four HOF contests.
Four straight HOF games have been decided by four points or more.
Hall of Fame Game Betting Preview: Steelers vs. Vikings
By Covers.com
Pittsburgh Steelers at Minnesota Vikings (-3.5, 35)
Football bettors rejoice as the NFL returns with the annual Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio Sunday. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings face off and will look to get their seasons off on the right foot with the Steelers failing to get past the Wild Card round since 2010-11 and the Vikings not making the postseason since 2012.
The Steelers lost in the Wild Card round against the Baltimore Ravens last season when the team Pittsburgh offensive line allowed Ben Roethlisberger to be sacked five times. The Vikings are coming off a year full of controversy with the circus that was Adrian Peterson's legal issues, but found a gem in Teddy Bridgewater. The former Louisville signal-caller finished the season leading all rookie quarterbacks in yards per game and quarterback rating.
LINE HISTORY: Various books opened the game with the Vikings favored by 2.5-points, but that line has majorly shifted to -3.5. The total has never really moved off the originally set 34.5.
INJURY REPORT: Steelers - T Mike Adams (Out-Back), CB Senquez Golson (Out-Shoulder) Vikings - LB Casey Matthews (Out-Hip)
WHAT CAPPERS SAY: "NFL teams go about preseason games in different ways. Some teams will just go thru the motions, and others actually use the games to prepare them for the regular season. It all depends on the coach’s philosophy. Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin: “We don’t prepare a lot for the first game whether it’s the Hall of Fame Game or our first preseason game. We kind of play rules football and don’t spend a lot of time from a game standpoint. We don’t spend a lot of time focusing on our opponents the first time out.”
Minnesota’s situation is different. Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer was away from the team for some time; he was taking care of his sick father. Upon return, Zimmer had this to say about the Hall of Fame Game: “We want to be crisp, we want to look sharp and I want to see the things we’ve been practicing being taken to the game field.” Because of the above information, the Vikings have gone from a 2-point favorite up to a 3.5-point favorite." - Covers Expert Steve Merril
WHAT BOOKS SAY: "10 days ago we had this Hall of Fame matchup between the Steelers and the Vikings at Vikings -3 with a total of 34.5, now the line currently sits at Vikings -3.5 with 67 percent of the action to cover that number and the total is up to 35 with 71 percent of the action on the over." - Michael Stewart of Carbonsports.ag
ABOUT THE STEELERS: It is hard to look at this game too seriously for the Steelers as almost their entire starting offense will be sitting this one out. QB Ben Roethlisberger, RB Le'Veon Bell, WR Antonio Brown, TE Heath Miller, C Maurkice Pouncey and LB James Harrison are among the players sitting out the game against the Minnesota Vikings. Landry Jones, who has reportedly been very productive in training camp, will see the significant amount of snaps from under center. There is also expectation that CB Brandon Boykin will see plenty of action since he was recently acquired from the Eagles and has told the coaches to 'throw me in whenever.'
Expect the Steelers defense to show some creative looks throughout the preseason with new defensive coordinator Keith Butler in charge. There could be a lot of misdirections and Butler will try to get one-on-one matchups for his defensive ends.
ABOUT THE VIKINGS: Even though Teddy Bridgewater missed Friday's walk-through due to family matters, he is expected to get the start for the Vikings. In last year's preseason Bridgewater threw five touchdowns with no interceptions and a QB rating of 111.2. There has been no official word on whether or not we will see Adrian Peterson enter the game for the Vikings, but coach Mike ZImmer said the lineup will depend on his "mood."
The Vikings defense was far from perfect last season, which led the organization to fo defense-heavy in this years draft. The top three picks by the team (Trae Waynes, Eric Kendricks, Danielle Hunter) are all defensive players who will likely see some significant time this preseason. Especially Kendricks as Anthony Barr has been dealing with some lingering injury issues in camp.
TRENDS:
*NFC teams are 9-2 SU and 8-2-1 ATS versus AFC teams in contests in Canton.
*Eight of the last 11 Hall of Fame Games have played Over with a total of 35 or less points.
*The Steelers are 2-9-1 ATS in the past three preseasons.
*The Vikings went 4-0 SU and 3-1 ATS last preseason.
CONSENSUS: 51 percent of Covers users are taking the Vikings with 55 percent on the over.
NFL: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Pittsburgh Steelers vs Minnesota Vikings
Believe it or not, it's the beginning of another football season as the Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings square off Sunday in the Hall of Fame Game. The oddsmakers have Vikings 3-point favorites against the Steelers, with the OVER/UNDER for the contest pegged at 35 points. Minnesota went a perfect 4-0 SU, 3-1 ATS in its four preseason games last year with the O/U going 1-3. Vikings enter 11-9 SU, 10-10 ATS the past 5 years of practice season with the O/U sitting at 9-11 during the span. Pittsburgh doesn't have a recent history of preseason success. Steelers went 1-3 both SU/ATS in four August games last year bringing the mark to 1-7 SU/ATS the past two season. Since 2010, the Steelers are 10-10 SU, 8-11-1 ATS with the O/U a dead even 10-10.
Interesting side note, the past seven HOF games the designed home team is 6-0-1 ATS outscoring the opponent 20.7 to 13.0 in tallying 3 'Over', 4 'Under'. As always best of luck this season but above all enjoy the games. Betting on the NFL in August is a completely different exercise than betting on the same sport a month later.