Saints, Steelers odds drop as a Brees and Roethlisberger are out

Week two of the 2019 season may go down as one of the biggest of the year as two organizations were rocked by the bad news to two franchise players.

In Pittsburgh, the Steelers announced via social media that 37-year-old Roethlisberger will require surgery on his elbow, which is scheduled for this week; he will be out the remainder of the season. Second-year Quarterback Mason Rudolph who nearly held the Steelers to a comeback win against the Seahawks, now takes over the starting role moving forward.

With that news, the Steelers odds at Sports Interaction dropped significantly, as they were a contender prior to the injury in the AFC at +1600, and a mild longshot to win the Super Bowl at +3300. The adjusted numbers are in and without Big Ben under center; the Steelers are now +5000 to win the conference, and not even a consideration at +10000 to capture the Super Bowl.

Rudolph will make his first career start this Sunday in San Francisco versus the 2-0 49ers. The 49ers re-opened as 7-point favourites at Sports Interaction.

In New Orleans, the news is equally upsetting, but there is a silver lining at the end of this for the Saints.  went down in the first quarter in the team’s 27-9 loss to the Rams in a rematch of last night’s NFC conference championship.

Brees will undergo surgery on his injured right hand and likely miss six weeks, according to multiple reports. The NFL Network reported that Brees tore a ligament in his right thumb. The early hope is he returns after the team’s bye week in week nine, to face the Falcons at home on November 10.

Veteran Teddy Bridgewater took over for Brees against the Rams and is expected to be the team’s starter moving forward, but there is an option of using Tayson Hill, who played well during the preseason.

The Saints were the favourites to win the NFC South division, and a major contender to come out of conference at +475 only behind the Rams, that number has now dropped to +700. They were also a favourite to win the Super Bowl at +1000, which has now been adjusted to +1200.