Both the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns went off the board at online sportsbooks as underdogs last week. Neither was able to get into the win column though the Bengals either pushed or cashed a ticket dependent upon where you got into the market had you backed Joe Borrow in his NFL debut. The Browns on the other hand were huge disappointments once again after getting rolled up and smoked by the division rival Baltimore Ravens. Linemakers have Kevin Stefanski’s troops installed 6-point favorites to get in the win column and even their record, though the Bengals proved to be the more competitive of the two teams on the scoreboard last week. These division rivals played to a pair of high scorers last season with an average of 51 points hitting the board, but this Thursday night’s O/U hit the board at 45 and that’s still likely too high.
Watch this regular season NFL Week 2 matchup on Thursday, September 17, 2020, at 8:20 p.m. ET from FirstEnergy Stadium. Catch the game live on the NFL Network and bet on the NFL odds at BookMaker.eu every day of the season.
NFL Odds at Bookmaker.eu
Cincinnati Bengals +6
Cleveland Browns -6
Over/Under 45
Odds Analysis
The betting line for this Week 2 matchup had been made available to wager upon even before Week 1 kicked off. Cleveland initially opened up as 7.5-point favorites with the total set at 45. Even before the Bengals lost a tough one at home to the Bolts and the Browns got their salad tossed by the current Super Bowl LV favorites, the betting line was on the decline. Cleveland is now only laying 6-points with a whopping 74 percent of the betting handle currently siding with Zac Taylor’s squad. The total remains at 45 though upwards of 68 percent of the early bets taken have come in support of a low scorer playing out. It’s down to 44.5 at other outs. If you think the team’s struggle to put points on the board come Thursday night, you might want to jump in now!
Injury Report
Stud defensive tackle Geno Atkins was forced to miss Cincy’s season opener due to a shoulder injury. In his absence, his teammates were still able to tally a pair of QB sacks but did surrender a total of 155 yards on 39 carries as well as a rushing touchdown to Austin Ekeler, Joshua Kelley and Tyrod Taylor. With Cleveland expected to run Nick Chubb down their throats, the defense would stand a better chance of keeping him in check with their run stuffer back in action.
Former LSU standout Greedy Williams wasn’t able to make his NFL debut last week against the Ravens due to the shoulder injury that kept him sidelined throughout most of training camp. Lamar Jackson had himself a good ‘ol time picking on the Browns secondary by throwing for 275 yards and 3 TD. Burrow didn’t look overwhelmed in his NFL debut in completing 64 percent of his passes, and he’ll be looking to tally his first touchdown in this one. That occurring is a good bet as beat up Cleveland’s secondary currently is without a timetable for Greedy’s return.
Matchup to Watch
Novice football bettors will be quick to fade the Browns in their home opener considering they got their doors blown off 38-6 this past Sunday. However, the box score didn’t paint a picture of a 32-point beat down, and that could get Bengals supporters into some big trouble come Thursday night. While they were outgained by 71 yards, they still rattled off 20 first downs to the Ravens 23, matched Baltimore’s two sacks, played nearly even in the time of possession battle and successfully converted their lone red zone appearance into a touchdown. The negatives however were three costly penalties on third down that allowed the Ravens to move the chains, as well as some pretty terrible red zone defense that saw the Ravens capitalize 5-of-6 times. Losing the turnover battle 3:1 also proved costly. With most of the damage self-inflicted, there is room for improvement moving forward. If Stefanski and the coaching staff can shore that up on a short week, the Browns are going to find themselves in a solid position to even their record up and likely cover the NFL odds in the process.
Free ATS Pick
I’ve got mad respect for Joe Burrow. He earned it in spades last season by leading the LSU Tigers to the national championship. However, I’m having a hard time envisioning him flourishing in his first road game – on a short week no less – that allows the Bengals to be competitive against an opponent I consider the better overall team that just got its breakfast, lunch and dinner served up the previous week. If Cincy just gave up 148 rushing yards to Chargers running backs, how is it going to keep Chubb and Kareem Hunt at bay in this one? The answer is they’re not. Should the betting public continue to pounce on the visitors, wait to see how much lower the line goes and hit the Browns minus the points; Cleveland gets healthy in this spot in an easy under!
NFL Pick: Browns 24, Bengals 13
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