Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts Odds

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This season certainly hasn’t gone as expected for the reigning AFC North division champs, and it gets no easier with a visit to Indianapolis up next.

The Cincinnati Bengals lost their fifth straight game when they fell to division rival Pittsburgh on Monday Night Football. All five losses have come by eight points or less – one possession games.

Unfortunately for Cincinnati, NFL odds makers expect it to drop a sixth straight contest this week. They have listed the Bengals as a 7.5-point underdog with the total set at 47.

Indianapolis saw its three-game winning streak come to an end with a 24-26 loss at Philadelphia. Michael Vick outshined Peyton Manning in his return to the starting lineup. It was an uncharacteristically bad game for Manning. He completed just 31 of his 52 pass attempts for 294 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. He was also sacked three times. His 65.7 passer rating was his second-lowest of the season.

The Indianapolis defense has shown that it can be susceptible to the run. Indy ranks 29th in the NFL against the run, allowing 140.9 yards per game on the ground. The Colts have given up an average of 208.7 rushing yards per game in their three losses, including 195 in last week’s loss to the Eagles.

The Bengals haven’t looked to pound the football with Cedric Benson the way they did last season, but this may be the week to do it.

While Cincy has been struggling, it does have a nice chunk of history on its side. In fact, underdogs of 3.5 to 10 points coming off three or more consecutive losses, if they have won 25 percent or less of their games, and if they are playing a team with a winning record in the second half of the season, are 28-8 against the spread the last 10 seasons. This system is 8-1 against the number the last three seasons.

The Colts have certainly gotten the best of the Bengals in recent years. In fact, Indy has won nine of the last 12 meetings. The last two times the Bengals have visited Indianapolis, they were handed 18 and 32-point defeats.

In order for Indy to bounce back, it will need a much better performance from Manning. No team depends on any player more than the Colts depend on their quarterback. He has to play nearly perfect for Indy to win, and most of the time he does.

It hasn’t helped that Manning has been missing several of his primary targets due to injuries.  Still, one has to expect the great Peyton Manning to have a bounce back performance.  However, it might not be enough if the defense doesn’t rise to the occasion. Indy will especially need to blanket wide receiver Terrell Owens.

T.O. caught 10 passes for 141 yards and two scores against a very good Pittsburgh defense. He has proven that he still has plenty of good football left in him.

It is worth noting that the Colts are 7-1 against the spread in their last eight games as a home favorite of 3.5 to 10.0 points.

About the Author: Jimmy Boyd is known for his consistency. He's a proven winner in college and pro football, college and pro basketball and pro baseball. He finished as the No. 1 ranked MLB handicapper in 2007 by earning $1,000/game bettors $50,050. He also finished as the No. 1 ranked basketball handicapper in the 2008-09 season, profiting $1,000/game bettors 38,530. His basketball plays have banked $1,000/game bettors nearly $80,000 the last five years. Check out Jimmy's premium picks for tonight!
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