• Bet Cincinnati Bengals (-3.5) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Fundamentally, the Bengals have been one of the best teams in the NFL this year and have shown the ability to adapt to opponents as well as injuries.
• Bet Dallas Cowboys @ Jacksonville Jaguars over 46.5: The Cowboys and Jaguars come into this matchup seventh and ninth, respectively, in expected points added (EPA) allowed per play on offense, with both offenses playing their best football of the season over the last month.
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Estimated Reading Time: 4 mins
Editor's Note: Betting lines are accurate as of post-Sunday Night Football.
Cincinnati Bengals (-3.5) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Why to bet:
• Fundamentally, the Bengals have been one of the best teams in the NFL this year and have shown the ability to adapt to opponents as well as injuries. Despite starting slowly and losing receivers Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins to injuries, the Bengals offense found a way to still put up points, and it still has Ja’Marr Chase.
• The big surprise has been how good their defense has been this year, though. Despite losing cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, they’ve held up well in recent weeks despite playing good quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. Since D.J. Reader‘s return, the Bengals' run defense has been near the top of the league and has slowed down guys like Derrick Henry and Nick Chubb.
• The question we have to ask ourselves is, what are the Bucs good at? Their offense has been terrible all season, their defense just gave up 35 points to Brock Purdy and a San Francisco 49ers offense that lost Deebo Samuel midway through the game and the coaching staff constantly leaves win-probability points on the board with their fourth-down decision-making. And as for their “vaunted” run defense, well, they just got shredded by the 49ers on Sunday Night Football, too.
Why to be wary:
• Tom Brady & Co. could get back on track if tackle Tristan Wirfs returns for this game. But even with him in the lineup, it’s not like this offense was anything special. The Bengals have been playing as well as any team in the league, while the Bucs have been doing the complete opposite.
Dallas Cowboys @ Jacksonville Jaguars over 46.5