Bengals vs. Ravens Odds
BALTIMORE, MD (The Spread) – Two physical AFC rivals meet up on Sunday at 1PM ET on CBS as the Baltimore Ravens host the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Bengals were 11-5 last season, winning the AFC North, but losing in the first round of the playoffs. The Ravens went 8-8 in 2013 and missed the playoffs a season after winning the Super Bowl. The home team has won eight of the last nine in this series.
Trends show that the home team has covered the spread in four straight in this series and the favorite is 5-0-1 against the spread in the last six between these two. They have also hit the under in 5 of their last 7 meetings in Baltimore.
According to oddsmakers from BetDSI, Baltimore is the slight favorite at home, as the Ravens are getting odds of -2 points against the Bengals. The over/under total for the game has been set at 43 points (View Matchup). The opening odds for this game had Baltimore favored by 2 points. The spread hit a peak of 2.5 before falling all the way to even. The spread then climbed back to Baltimore -2. The over/under total opened at 43.5 points and hit a low of 42.5 before settling in at 43.
Baltimore seemed to suffer from a bit of a Super Bowl hangover last year, never looking its best. The offense averaged just over 300 yards per game, which should be much higher given its weapons. The team will be without Ray Rice in the backfield for the first two games because of a suspension, but Baltimore did sign Steve Smith at receiver in the offseason to help give the team more speed. Defensively, the Ravens should still be strong. Terrell Suggs remains the focal point of the unit. He had 80 tackles and 10 sacks in 2013.
Cincinnati has established itself as a force in the AFC North for years to come. The offense has a solid foundation under quarterback Andy Dalton, who just signed a new contract a few weeks ago. He has one of the top receivers in the league to throw to in A.J. Green, and the Bengals also have dynamic running back Giovani Bernard ready for his second season. The strength of the team is the defense, which ranked fifth in fewest passing and rushing yards allowed last season. The defense is led by Vontaze Burfict, who led the NFL in tackles last year with 171, including eight tackles for loss.
In terms of Injuries, Baltimore cornerback Lardarius Webb (back) is questionable for this game. Cincinnati tackle Andre Smith (concussion) and cornerback Darqueze Dennard (hip) are both questionable as well.
The Public Bets for this game are currently backing the Bengals, as Cincinnati is getting 52% of the wagers with point spread odds of +2 at Baltimore on Sunday.
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