Cleveland Browns @ Cincinnati Bengals NFL Betting Prediction

Cleveland Browns @ Cincinnati Bengals NFL Betting Prediction: A lot of people seem to like the Bengals in this one, and I can’t quite figure out why. Jake Delhomme will not be on the field, so 2 free possessions will not be given to the Bengals. Colt McCoy is back running the show after showing he’s all healed up in the ankle region. He may not have the seasoning that old Jake has, but the kid has proven he’s a winner, he makes good decisions, and he’s not afraid to make plays with his feet. The team has confidence in him, and that has been easy to see over his first few starts in the league.

The Bengals have been snake-bit a little, definitely. That’s the only way they could lose so many games by a single score. But they haven’t played consistent enough (in any facet of the game) to be a winning team. Two wins seems a little ridiculous, I mean, they aren’t that bad, but consistency is key – and they have none. Cinci definitely has more impressive stats – passing the ball better, gaining more yards, giving up fewer yards, scoring more, controlling the ball longer, taking fewer penalties and finishing in the red-zone all better than the Browns. But Cincinnati throws the ball too much, they haven’t run it well sans a game or two all season long, and that makes all the difference.

The Bengals are 30th in the league in rushing. When they are up big, they can’t put games away. On 1st down, they rarely get much. They haven’t committed to the run at all, and it’s funny, they were basically an all-in running team last season when they went to the playoffs. Anyway, they don’t stop the run well either. That should give the Browns just what they need to get win #6 on the season. They really have played solid football most of the time this year, as evidenced by their -1 average point differential. The Bengals will likely do what they’ve done well all season, lose.

Cleveland Browns (+2) @ Cincinnati Bengals