Bengals receive the exact treatment you’d expect from betting markets following their embarrassing loss to Vikings
There’s not much faith to be found in Cincinnati right now.
In a “what have you done for me lately” world, the Cincinnati Bengals look like a depressing team despite their 2-1 record.
Cincinnati’s 48-10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings was the worst loss in the franchise’s 58-year history. Jake Browning had a messy day at quarterback, three of his weapons fumbled in three consecutive drives, and the entire roster just fell flat in the first game without Joe Burrow.
Betting markets seem to believe this version of the team is more likely to stick around for the next week.
Bengals open as big underdogs against Broncos
The Bengals will play on “Monday Night Football” at the Denver Broncos next week, and they’re opening as 7.5-point underdogs.
The last time the Bengals were this much of an underdog was in 2023, coincidentally, entering Browning’s second start of that season. Cincinnati also happened to be playing on MNF on the road against another AFC team in the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Bengals not only covered as 10-point dogs, they won, 34-31, in overtime for Browning’s first career win as a starter.
Cincinnati hasn’t been more than a 6.5-point dog since then, mainly because Burrow has been healthy and Browning inspired confidence after that win in Jacksonville. He inspired more faith two weeks ago when he beat the Jags yet again coming off the bench, which is why the Bengals were only 3-point dogs this past week.
The Vikings covering by 35 points certainly made an impression.
Catastrophic losses like what happened in Minnesota aren’t common, and it would be far more unlikely for the Bengals to have a repeat performance in Denver, but 7.5-points as a spread is quite the number. It means there just isn’t much confidence in a Browning-led offense combined with a largely unproven defense to keep it close against a playoff-hopeful team in another hostile environment. The Broncos at 6-3 covering the spread at home since last year when Bo Nix took over at QB.
It’s time for Cincinnati to embrace the underdog role, because everyone needs to see them succeed again before believing it’s possible.
Cincinnati Bengals News
Three Bengals players will have to quickly overcome new injuries in order to play their former team next week
Cincinnati has a few more injuries to monitor this week.
