Are the Browns Going to Score Against Cincy?
The Game:
Cincinnati Bengals at Cleveland Browns
The Play:
Browns Team Total UNDER 25 Points (-110)
The Cleveland Browns probably blew any chance at making the playoffs with their 20-13 loss on Sunday in Pittsburgh against the rival Steelers. That loss marked the fifth time in the last six games where the Browns scored 21 or less points. Quarterback Baker Mayfield has had a tough season and now has more turnovers than touchdown passes. Browns running back Nick Chubb has had a nice season running the ball, but he has had a turnover issue himself with six giveaways on the year.
To make matters worse, the Browns haven’t had much success against their instate rival the Bengals in past matchups. The Browns have scored more than 25 points in just two of the last 12 times they have faced Cincinnati. The Bengals have held 3 straight opponents (Oak 17, Pitt 16, Jets 6) under 25 points and have done so to opponents in four of their last five contests. Most recently, the Bengals held the Jets to just 62 rushing yards and while quarterback Sam Darnold mustered just a 58% passing. They did all this after holding the duo of Steelers quarterbacks to under 50% passing in the previous week.
It’s been a long season for the Bengals, but again, their defense has been playing tough lately and you can thank Carlos Dunlap, Sam Hubbard, and Geno Atkins for much of it; they have combined for 15 sacks this season. The Browns better take note that the Bengals don’t quit, especially late in games. In fact, the Bengals have not allowed a touchdown in the 4th quarter touchdown in any of their last five gmaes and have given up just three field goals in that time. The Browns might not be ready for the Bengals after losing to Pittsburgh. I can see them having a difficult time scoring touchdowns based on their history, but also the sudden upswing in tenacity from the Bengals defense.
The Prediction:
20 Cleveland Browns
17 Cincinnati Bengals
Harry Gagnon spent 14 years as a Vegas Sportsbook Supervisor and holds a Communications degree from SUNY-Oswego. You might know him better as part of the Degenerate Trifecta on the award nominated betting podcast “Against All odds with Cousin Sal” on the Ringer Podcast Network. Feel free to find him on Twitter (@AAOHarry) and tweet him a message if you want to talk casinos, sports, or just shoot the breeze about betting in general cause, hey, that’s what Twitter is for, right?