A cracking Thursday Night Football matchup, as two powerhouses from the AFC North go head-to-head in their second meeting of the season, with the Bengals heading to Baltimore to take on the Ravens. With the Bengals currently one game out of the playoff picture, and the Ravens needing a win to keep pace with the Steelers, the stakes are high for both teams in what should be a belter of a game. We bring you our full betting preview below!
NFL Week 10 Preview & Betting Tips
Baltimore Ravens vs Cincinnati Bengals
M&T Bank Stadium, Friday 8th November, 12:15pm (AEDT)
Last Week
The Ravens bounced back after their week 8 loss to the Browns, dominating the Denver Broncos for four quarters on their way to a 41-10 victory. Lamar Jackson was perfect at quarterback, going 16-19 for 280 yards and 3 touchdowns. Zay Flowers continued his breakout campaign, hauling in 5 receptions for 127 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Ravens finished with video game type offensive numbers, posting 13.4 yards per pass play, and 7.3 yards per play compared to the Broncos 4.7 yards per play. There are still some question marks about this Ravens defence, but the offense is the best in the league right now.
The Bengals also put up 41 points last week, in an easy 41-24 win over the Raiders at home. Joe Burrow was superb, throwing for 251 yards and 5 touchdowns, with tight end Mike Gesicki hauling in 5 passes for 100 yards and 2 touchdowns. Whilst they conceded 24 points, it was mainly garbage time, with the Raiders putting up 14 points in the fourth quarter to make the scoreboard somewhat respectable, but it was all Bengals, and they thoroughly deserved the win.
Injury Report
Baltimore Ravens
Michael Pierce (DT) – OUT
Trayvon Mullen / T.J. Tampa / Christian Matthew (CB) – OUT
Malik Hamm (LB) – OUT
Owen Wright / Keaton Mitchell (RB) – OUT
Lamar Jackson (QB) – Questionable
Travis Jones (DT) – Questionable
Isaiah Likely (TE) – Questionable
Cincinnati Bengals
Erick All (TE) – OUT
Zack Moss / Chris Evans (RB) – OUT
Trent Brown / D’Ante Smith / Jaxson Kirkland (OT) – OUT
Dax Hill (DB) – OUT
Cameron Sample (DE) – OUT
B.J. Hill (DT) – Questionable
Orlando Brown (OT) – Questionable
Tee Higgins / Charlie Jones (WR) – Questionable
Geno Stone (SAF) – Questionable
Match Preview
The Ravens and Bengals met back in week 5 in Cincinnati, where the Ravens closed 2.5-point road favourites, with a total of 48.5. In a crazy, high-octane game of offensive football, the Bengals managed a 3-point overtime victory, after Evan McPherson missed a 53-yard field goal in overtime. Both teams put up over 440 yards of offense, with the Ravens managing some tremendous turnover luck, after having fumbled the ball three times for only the one lost fumble. The total was very obviously never in doubt, and outlined the fact that these teams are both exceptional offenses, and limited defences.
Looking towards this week, and the Ravens opened 6-point favourites on the lookahead, before re-opening at 6.5 after last weekend’s games. Bengals money entered the market early on, pulling this back to 6, where it has stayed since. This number seems short to me, however I can understand books not willing to push this to 7, given it is a rivalry matchup. I do like the Ravens to cover this one, but there is a slight doubt given how much this one means to the Bengals.
Moving towards the total, it opened a paltry 49.5 on the lookahead, before re-opening at 52.5. This seemed like a far more realistic number, given the two offenses we have here. Whilst I would lean towards the over, I prefer the Ravens’ team total here, as there is a scenario where they jump out to a lead and the Bengals are shut out of this one. With the Ravens’ total sitting around 29.5, another big Lamar game is needed, and it is something I believe will happen. Ravens to score 30+ here for me.
Looking towards props, and I love the Zay Flowers overs here. He dominated the Bengals back in week 5, and besides his injury affected duck egg against the Bucs, he has continued that form for the past month of football. His over/under is at 60.5, and this is a great bet, but I’m a little more bullish here, and will bump it up to 75+ yards at bigger odds. Another prop I love, but I can’t make the bet just yet, is Mike Gesicki overs. Since Tee Higgins has been out the past two weeks, Gesicki has feasted in this offense. If Higgins misses again this week, bet Gesicki overs.
Prop Bet: Zay Flowers (75+) receiving yards - $2.60 at Bet365 (1.5u)
Ravens (team total) over 29.5
$1.86 (2 Units)
