First Call: Steelers already positioned as underdogs against Chargers; Penguins' next opponent battling similar tough stretch

Monday’s “First Call” turns the page on the 16-16 Steelers tie against Detroit. We look at Sunday night’s game between the Steelers and Los Angeles Chargers. We check on the Penguins’ next opponent and look for plenty of points in Pitt’s next game. And the Duquesne Dukes have another home game before hitting the road.

Underdogs already

Neither the Steelers nor the Los Angeles Chargers should be very happy coming off of their most recent performances.

Now they get to play each other.

The Steelers just tied the winless Detroit Lions 16-16 at Heinz Field Sunday. The Chargers lost at home to the Minnesota Vikings 27-20.

The Chargers welcome the Steelers for “Sunday Night Football” next week. And they’ll do so as three-point favorites, despite losing three of their last four games.

Betonline.ag has already installed the Chargers as a field-goal favorite. The Steelers won during their last trip to L.A., beating the Chargers 24-17 in 2019 during Devlin Hodges’ first start at quarterback.

Maybe the Steelers can learn something from how the Vikings defended Justin Herbert. The Chargers quarterback only had 195 passing yards. That was tied for his 2021 season-low output.

Points galore

Speaking of the odds, Pitt plays Virginia Saturday at Heinz Field.

The Panthers are 5-1 in ACC play. That’s tops in the Coastal Division. The Cavaliers are in second place with a 4-2 mark. Pitt is a 13.5-point favorite with an over-under point total set at 66.5 according to BetRivers.com.

How did they reach that total? Well, Pitt posts 43.5 points per game. The Cavs are at 35.3. The Panthers allow 22.7, and UVA gives up 30.5.

So that means the average Pitt game results in 66.2 points per game. Virginia’s average game is at 65.8

When two teams who score that much get together, usually, the total goes up. So, I say go over.

I know that wasn’t the case in Pitt versus North Carolina Thursday night. But that was a midweek game with bad weather. Throw that out.

You are going to see some offense at Heinz Field Saturday.

We feel your pain

The Penguins are back home after a rough two-game road trip. They lost 6-3 in Ottawa Saturday and 6-1 in Washington Sunday.

The Pens (14 points, seventh in the Metropolitan Division) have lost four of their last five games. But their next opponent isn’t faring much better.

After a 5-1-1 stretch to open the season, the Buffalo Sabres (14 points, sixth in the Atlantic Division) come to Pittsburgh Tuesday as losers in six of their last seven games.

Quick turnaround

After opening their season with home dates on Tuesday and Saturday, the Duquesne men’s basketball team plays again Monday night.

The Weber State Wildcats come to Pittsburgh from Ogden, Utah. Tipoff at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse is at 7 p.m.

The Wildcats won their first game over Western Colorado 100-60. Duquesne split its first two games. They won 73-61 over Rider on Tuesday.

Easley from behind the arc‼️

Duquesne by 5#GoDukes pic.twitter.com/p3meXjwbMv

— Duquesne Basketball (@DuqMBB) November 10, 2021

But then the Dukes lost to Hofstra 73-63 Saturday behind 29 from Pride guard Zach Cooks.

???????????????? ???????? to some ???????????? of #Hofstra's big road win over Duquesne on Saturday night❗ The first win in the career of Head Coach @speeddeamon❗#RoarWithPride pic.twitter.com/TNrhJ3fMav

— Hofstra Men's Basketball (@HofstraMBB) November 14, 2021

After their game against the Wildcats, the Dukes will play Northeastern Friday in the Virgin Islands for their first game of the Paradise Jam.

The Duquesne women’s team got a win Sunday, beating Lafayette 60-47. And the football team won Saturday, outlasting Central Connnecticut State 31-27.