Cleveland Browns (5-7) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (8-4)
December 11, 2022 1:00 pm EDT
The Line: Cincinnati Bengals -4.5 / Cleveland Browns +4.5; Over/Under: +48.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Cleveland Browns and the Cincinnati Bengals meet in a week 14 NFL matchup from Paul Brown Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Cleveland Browns will look to build on back-to-back wins after a 27-14 road win over Houston last time out. Deshaun Watson threw for 131 yards and an interception in his debut while Jacoby Brissett has thrown for 2,608 yards, 12 touchdowns and 6 interceptions on 64.1% passing. Nick Chubb has a team-high 1,119 rushing yards with 12 touchdowns and Kareem Hunt also has 417 rushing yards as well this season. Amari Cooper has a team-high 832 receiving yards coming on 61 catches with 7 touchdowns while David Njoku has 464 receiving yards and Donovan Peoples-Jones has 637 receiving yards as well on the year. On defense, Grant Delpit has a team-high 75 total tackles while Myles Garrett has 10 sacks this season.
The Cincinnati Bengals will look to add to their 27-24 win over Kansas City last time out. Joe Burrow has thrown for 3,446 yards, 25 touchdowns and 8 interceptions on 69.1% passing while Joe Mixon leads the Bengals with 605 rushing yards and 6 touchdowns so far this year. Tee Higgins has 60 grabs for 861 receiving yards with 5 TDs while Ja’Marr Chase has 54 grabs for 702 yards and 6 TDs and Tyler Boyd has 655 receiving yards and 4 scores as well on the year. On defense, Germaine Pratt has a team-high 78 total tackles while Trey Hendrickson has a team-high 6 sacks this season.
Cleveland is 5-13 ATS in their last 18 division games and 14-35-2 ATS in their last 51 games against a team with a winning record while the over is 4-1 in their last 5 week 12 matchups. Cincinnati is 4-0 ATS in their last 4 home games and 21-7 ATS in their last 28 games overall while the over is 3-0-1 in their last 4 games against a team with a losing record.
I was on the Browns in the first meeting between these two, as the Browns were desperate to keep their season alive and got the win at home in primetime. However, that was then and this is now, and while the Browns are still desperate and need a win here to keep their faint division hopes alive, the reality is that the Bengals have gotten better since then and have been firing on all cylinders in recent weeks. Some may call for a letdown after Cincinnati’s big win over the Chiefs, but I think the Bengals know they can’t afford to slip up here and I don’t believe they do as Cincy wins this one by at least a touchdown.
