The Cincinnati Bengals will surprise this season, and it’s amazing how a team that actually won its division by going 6-0 against divisional foes a year ago and improved itself in the off season still remains under the radar.
Add in the fact that they potentially own the best secondary in the AFC and quite possibly the entire league, and those +875 NFL Futures on Cincinnati winning the AFC sure look tasty!
But first things first as they get a chance to make an immediate statement by going on the road to take on the New England Patriots in a nice Week 1 NFL Matchup.
The current betting spread on this game finds New England favored by 4.5-points in NFL Week 1 Odds with the betting total set at 45.
If Carson Palmer does not have a breakout season at quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals, then he may need to consider looking for another profession. Terrell Owens looks to be a great signing, as he actually looks better than Chad Ochocinco at this point. And both of the Cincinnati prized draft picks looked great in the preseason, with Jordan Shipley making a superb slot receiver and Jermaine Gresham a beast at tight end.
Do not forget about the running game either, as Cedric Benson had a breakout year in 2009 and he looks as good as ever right now. Cincinnati also has nice depth at the position, as Bernard Scott also looked good in preseason and he got valuable experience filling in for Benson when he missed a couple of games last year.
Benson should have a nice game here as the New England Patriots look vulnerable against the run right now. Ty Warren is out for the year and New England has still not adequately replaced Richard Seymour, so the Pats’ defensive line can easily be overmatched in this spot.
With Benson having gaping holes to run through, that will only make things easier for Palmer and his plethora of weapons. Betting odds are that the Cincinnati offense will be a handful for New England to contain, especially without a decent pass rusher to at least make the immobile Palmer move around a bit.
So, the Patriots can simply outscore the Bengals anyway no matter how many points the defense allows, right? Well Virginia, this is not 2007 any more! The offense is another year older, and New England’s Tom Brady will be throwing against not one but two shutdown corners.
Darrelle Revis of the New York Jest may be the best cornerback in all of football, but no team has a better tandem of corners than the Bengals do with Leon Hall and Jonathan Joseph.
These two are so good that Cincinnati can afford to blitz Brady often, knowing there will be few if any blown coverages in the secondary, and one thing defenses have learned over the years is that heavy pressure is the only way to slow down Brady.
The Bengals +4½ on the football spread seems like the prudent play here and the betting odds of +175 on the Cincinnati Money Line also look very attractive.
