Posted at 8:00 AM ET. Odds are subject to change

Pittsburgh +2½ over Tampa Bay

Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL

7:00 PM ET. Preseason numbers are built on reputation and quarterback depth charts, which gives us an edge here with the better team catching points.

Tampa Bay beat the Titans last week behind Kyle Trask and a heavy run script — 41 handoffs in total — and the narrative coming out of their joint practices with Pittsburgh is that the Bucs’ starters looked sharp. That’s relevant… but not definitive. Baker Mayfield is sitting, and while it was originally just Evans and David set to rest, the list grew after Thursday’s workout.

Todd Bowles revealed that Teddy Bridgewater will make his debut here, which is fine in theory. Bridgewater’s been serviceable for years. Still, he’s only been with the team for 11 days and will be running a vanilla preseason script with unfamiliar personnel. That’s not exactly plug-and-play.

Trask was efficient last week, but his leash will be shorter now that Bridgewater is available. So, we get two average QBs alternating behind a run-first, simplified attack — and that’s supposed to warrant laying a price?

On the other side, Pittsburgh went up and down the field last week without Rodgers, Watt, Metcalf, or Heyward. None of those guys are expected here either, which is already priced in. The story is Skylar Thompson.

Thompson came in after Mason Rudolph’s first couple drives and torched Jacksonville for 233 yards and three touchdowns. Logan Woodside also got time and played mistake-free football. This is a Steelers QB room that’s producing results — and when it comes to preseason betting, that matters more than brand names on the inactive list.

Tampa’s defense is solid, but the backups will be tested far more than they were last week against a Titans team that looked totally disinterested. Pittsburgh’s offense is built to stay aggressive, and they’ve got three quarterbacks who are battling for pecking order — not coasting through a script.

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