Denver at Cincinnati Week 3 Betting Pick & Prediction

It has been an excruciating start to the season for the Cincinnati Bengal (1-1), who began their season with road trips to two tough opponents in the New York Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers. And it won’t be getting any easier for the Bengals who will be hosting the defending Super Bowl Champs, the Denver Broncos (2-0), at the Paul Brown Stadium this Sunday. Guide you wagers for this game-of- the-week showdown with the online NFL betting preview prepared below.

Denver at Cincinnati Week 3 Betting Pick, Prediction & TV Info

#BeatTheBengals pic.twitter.com/gz2WbsWpZh

— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) September 22, 2016

When: Sunday, September 25, 2016 Where: Lambeau Field, Green Bay TV: Fox Radio: Detroit / Green Bay Stream Option: NFL Live NFL Lines: Cincinnati (-3), OVER/UNDER 41

Why Bet on Denver?

First year starter Trevor Sieman couldn’t have had a better start to his Denver career, going 2-0 and doing so against Super Bowl finalists Carolina (led by reigning NFL MVP Cam Newton) and the Indianapolis Colts, who are quarterbacked by the most expensive player in the NFL in Andrew Luck. It’s inaccurate, however, to credit Sieman entirely for Denver’s fine start to the season, as the QB has received plenty of help from his teammates. Defensively, Von Miller and the Broncos have racked up the second-most sacks (8), constantly causing all kinds of problems to opposing QBs. In Week 1, for example, they held Newton to just 176 passing yards and limited Carolina to 20 points. This was followed by another strong defensive showcase last week, where they held Luck to a 197-yard performance and tallied two defensive TDs off Indy’s offensive mistakes. This, mind you, came a week after the Indy QB had thrown for 385 yards and four touchdowns in his season-opener. If there’s one thing you can therefore count on, it is that Andy Dalton and his Cincy offense will be in for a long day this Sunday. Meanwhile, star running back C.J. Anderson (232 yards of offense and three touchdowns this season) should continue to offer Sieman the much-needed offensive support in Cincinnati this weekend.

Why Bet on Cincinnati?

In spite of Cincinnati scoring just 23 points and 16 points in their first two games, Dalton leads the entire NFL with 732 passing yards, showing just how hard he’s been working to lift his team. And from the look of things, Dalton will once again have to carry the team on his shoulders, as Cincy’s running game has struggled so far in the season and the defense has considerably choked up during crunch time. That, of course, won’t be easy, as Denver boasts of a mean passing defense unit; something that is affirmed by the aforementioned numbers Denver gave to Newton and Luck. This means that Cincinnati will need all the extra effort it can get from Jeremy Hill and his fellow runners. Despite not lighting it up yet this season, Hill rushed for 147 yards, including an 85-yard touchdown run, the last time the Bengals and Broncos played at Paul Brown. If he can bring up a near-similar performance this Sunday, the Bengals should certainly have a winning chance. This should especially be encouraged by the fact that Sieman hasn’t been the steadiest of passers through the first two weeks, giving Cincinnati’s defense—which intercepted Ben Roethlisberger twice and pressured the QB on nearly half of his snaps—an opportunity to frustrate the inexperienced Denver signal-caller.

Expert Prediction and Betting Pick

Cincy’s 1-5 SU record in the last six meetings against Denver is very telling, and outsmarting Denver’s defense will be extremely tough. Even so, Dalton and the Bengals tend to play very well at home (Cincinnati is 18-6-1 SU in its last 25 home games), and that should come as a boost for Cincinnati, which will be playing its first home game this Sunday. In addition, Dalton has looked solid this season—and against some of the best defenses—while Sieman has been merely serviceable, relying mostly on the support of his teammates. With that, we are inclined to lean on Cincinnati for the win and points this Sunday. Predicted Final Score: Cincinnati 24, Denver 20 Writer’s Pick: OVER 41