Point Spread: Ravens -3
Total Line: 44.5
Cincinnati defeated San Diego 24-19 last week. Baltimore lost a shootout in Oakland on Sunday, 37-33.
Cincinnati’s offense has been rolling to start the season, both on land and by air. RB Jeremy Hill was benched last week for losing 2 fumbles but RB Giovani Bernard stepped in and ran for 123 yards. Hill will get his chances again this week. QB Andy Dalton has silenced the critics with his play so far, throwing for 5 TDs, no interceptions and a passer rating of 120.3. Part of his success has been spreading the ball around. Last year he focused too much on WR A.J. Green because of injuries to other players. WR Marvin Jones and TE Tyler Eifert are both back from injury and have been big contributors this season. The Ravens pass defense was gauged last week by an opponent the Bengals beat by 20 points a week before. Without OLB Terrell Suggs, the defense has appeared leaderless on the field, leading to big plays.
Ravens QB Joe Flacco had a huge game last week (384 yards, 2 scores) but he can’t play defense too. He is really focusing his attention on WR Steve Smith, who was targeted 16 times against the Raiders. The diminutive wideout responded with 10 catches for 150 yards but he needs help. TE Crockett Gillmore has played well also (7-111-2) but the Bengals have enough in the secondary that they should be able to contain these two. They also have a solid pass rush as DT Geno Atkins looks like his old self and DE Carlos Dunlap remains a solid pass rusher on the outside. RB Justin Forsett hasn’t found a lot of running room yet this year and he can expect to draw a lot of attention from the defense. Flacco needs some other receivers to step up and relieve the pressure on Smith to do everything.
Free NFL Prediction
This is exactly the type of situation where Cincinnati has fallen flat on their face in recent years. They’re on a run and facing a tough opponent or a division rival and then fold completely. I don’t think that will happen in this game however. They’re healthy and have enviable depth at several positions. This will mark the second game in the last 292 for the Ravens that they don’t have either MLB Ray Lewis, FS Ed Reed or OLB Terrell Suggs in the game. For 291 straight games, they always had at least one of those veterans to rally and lead the defense. They gave up 4 80+ yard drives last week to a team searching for an offensive identity. Look for the Bengals to mix up the run and pass and stamp their mark as a team to be reckoned with this year.
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Special thanks to Jeff Scott and the guys from Sports Betting Stats for this NFL game pick. For analysis and opinions against the point spread check them out.
