Bengals Can’t Get Down on Themselves as They Face Panthers
By Charles Jay
It’s already week 6 in the 2014/15 NFL season and we preview the Bengals vs Panthers. The Betting Lines posted by the folks at VietBet have the Bengals laying almost a full touchdown:
Cincinnati Bengals -6.5 (-115)
Carolina Panthers +6.5 (-105)
Over/Under 43.5 Points -110
Some members of the Cincinnati Bengals may have figured that they were ready to swoop in on Gillette Stadium and put the final nail in the coffin of the New England Patriots last Sunday night. VietBet customers, for the most part, also felt that way. They were sadly mistaken, as the 43-17 defeat indicated. Now the Bengals, the last unbeaten team in the league to get knocked off, must gather themselves for a big effort against a team that could be on an emotional high after a comeback from two touchdowns down last week. The Carolina Panthers come to Paul Brown Stadium with every intention of beating the NFL odds, in a game that kicks off at 1 PM ET and will be televised regionally on the Fox network.
Carolina has been going through all kinds of problems lately, but did manage to come back from a 21-7 deficit to defeat the Chicago Bears last Sunday. That gives them a 3-2 record at the moment, as they are winning “ugly,” but winning nonetheless. Cincinnati was beaten soundly in just about every phase of the game by New England, which had an emotional chip on its shoulder after getting destroyed in Kansas City the week before. These are the kinds of dynamics that determine pointspread winners in the NFL, but perhaps the Bengals can make the “anger factor” work to THEIR advantage in this ballgame.
Cam Newton deserves a lot of credit, because at least he is minimizing mistakes; he has thrown just one interception in 129 pass attempts. He has been able to make connections with his reliable tight end, Greg Olsen (27 catches, 326 yards) and the talented rookie out of Florida State, Kelvin Benjamin (24 receptions, 367 yards). But the running game is still relatively unstable, due to injuries and age. The Panthers are averaging only 3.1 yards per rushing attempt, and that might put too much of a burden on the shoulders of Newton and this passing game, which still doesn’t really have a great complementary wide receiver for Benjamin. Also, Newton is not as mobile as he has been in the past, because he’s being more careful due to his own injuries.
VietBet customers noticed that Cincinnati’s defensive line folded against New England, as they gave up 230 yards on the ground. The interesting thing about Cincinnati, as those analyzing the NFL odds should consider, is that they have been outgained on an overall basis this season, and also have fewer first downs than their opponents. They have also converted only 29.5% of their third-down opportunities, and some of this has to do with the fact that they don’t have a consistent ground attack. Giovanni Bernard is a versatile type, who catches a lot of passes out of the backfield, but he averages just 3.6 yards a pop when he’s running with the football.
VietBet patrons should not make any mistake about it, however; there are some positives to point to with this team. Quarterback Andy Dalton has been sacked only once, and is thrown just one interception, averaging 8.6 yards per passing attempt. Cincinnati is giving up five yards per rush, but all signs point to linebacker Vontaze Burfict’s return from the injury that kept him out of the game with New England. That would make a lot of difference for this defense. As far as pointspread trends that may be significant, Cincinnati has covered ten of its last 11 home games against the NFL odds. So is this the ideal situation for Carolina to be walking into?
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