Cincinnati Bengals vs. Detroit Lions Predictions, Odds, Picks

6 minute read

Oct. 17, 2021

Stuart Durst
VI American Football Betting Expert
VegasInsider.com

The Detroit Lions host the Cincinnati Bengals in a North Division battle between AFC and NFC teams. Kick off is set for 1:00 p.m. ET and will air on FOX from Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan.

Score Prediction

Bengals 24, Lions 20

Best Bets

Amon-Ra St. Brown (DET/WR) Over 4.5 receptions

Bengals ML

Cincinnati Bengals vs. Detroit Lions Predictions

Bengals vs. Lions is one of the surprisingly good matchups we have for Sunday's slate. While these teams are necessarily the cream of the crop, both are fairly situated to play a good competitive game. The Lions are coming into this game 4th in the NFC North with a 0-5 record. Despite a couple close losses from this Dan Campbell led squad they do have the reputation to fight and stay in games. The Bengals are coming into this game second in AFC North with a 3-2 record so far, with some up and down performances

Over the last two weeks Brown leads the Lions in receiving yards (135), receptions (13), and targets (16). With Quintez Cephus coming down with a season ending injury, Brown saw a 24% target share which led the Lions and was his career high. Cincy has the seventh-ranked rush defense and has locked down opposing running backs like Dalvin Cook throughout the season. Goff is gonna have to throw it a lot and Brown has 6 and seven catches over his last two games. It's a great spot for the rookie slot receiver.

Cincinnati Bengals vs. Detroit Lions Betting Odds

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Cincinnati Bengals vs. Detroit Lions Betting Resources

Matchup: AFC North vs. NFC North
Date: Sunday, October 17, 2021
Venue: Ford Field
Location: Detroit, Michigan
TV-Time: FOX - 1:00 p.m. ET

Cincinnati Bengals Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

SU: 3-2
ATS: 2-3
O/U: 1-4
ATS - Home: 1-2
ATS - Away: 1-1

I like the future outlook for the Bengals, but this team has looked inconsistent. Despite fairly impressive wins against the Vikings and Steelers, they still lost to the Bears in a close game and almost dropped a game to Jacksonville in prime-time. Their biggest weakness is the offensive line, when it holds up this team can compete with most in the league.

The offensive line being a weakness is normally game breaking, but when going against the Lions I'm not as worried. The Lions really don't have the pass rush necessary to scare the Bengals, which is the biggest reason the Bengals should take care of business. The offense and future of Joe Burrow relies on improving this unit in the future, but that shouldn't hold them back too much this week.

Detroit Lions Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

SU: 0-5
ATS: 3-2
O/U: 2-3
ATS - Home: 2-0
ATS - Away: 1-2

The Lions are getting a lot of credit in the media for their fighting spirit, notably with coach Campbell crying after last week's heartbreaking loss. While it's clear Campbell has this group of players giving maximum effort every week, I'm starting to worry these lines are getting a little small. When the Lions are huge underdogs I'm much more inclined to take them to cover. When only being 3-4 point underdogs, I'm not as interested.

This offense can be fairly one dimensional at times, but is getting the job done. Their general philosophy seems to be to run the ball and complete short throws. Goff isn't going to take many deep shots but this team will slowly move the ball down the field one first down at a time. The Bengals do have a very impressive run defense this season, so more responsibility is going to be on Goff in the passing game this week.

This defense is hard to analyze. They struggle to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks and have major problems in the secondary. That being said, they are playing way above expectations. There isn't much above average talent on this squad but they are doing their best, a good sign for Campbell's motivational coaching approach. This defense certainly can be beat deep, and I think it's very possible we see a couple of Burrow to Ja'Marr Chase bombs this week.

The Cincinnati Bengals have lost 20 of their last 23 road games. (AP)

Inside the Stats - Cincinnati Bengals

Record: 3-2
Division Standing: 2nd - AFC North
Points Scored: 114
Points Allowed: 100
PS/G: 22.8 (18th)
PA/G: 20 (7th)

Inside the Stats - Detroit Lions

Record: 0-5
Division Standing: 4th - NFC North
Points Scored: 98
Points Allowed: 138
PS/G: 19.6 (25th)
PA/G: 27.6 (25th)

Key Players to Watch

CIN: Joe Burrow - QB (104/145, 1,269 yards, 11 TD, 6 INT)
CIN: Ja'Marr Chase - WR (23, 456 yards, 5 TD)
DET: Jared Goff - QB (131/196, 1,303 yards, 7 TD, 3 INT)
DET: D'Andre Swift - RB (29 catches, 442 total yards, 3 Total TDs)

Cincinnati Bengals vs. Detroit Lions Betting Conclusion

Overall, I think the Bengals probably win this game but i'm not interested in the spread. This could be a good addition to a moneyline parlay. As for props, I already discussed why I love Amon-Ra St. Brown this week, but if you're looking for another good spot then 'Ja'Marr Chase over 25.5 longest reception' is a good spot. The Lions have been absolutely burned this season by the deep ball and Chase is one of the best young receivers in the NFL

Cincinnati Bengals vs. Detroit Lions Betting Trends

Detroit has gone OVER the point total in four of its last six games when facing Cincinnati.
Detroit has gone OVER the point total in 13 of its last 17 home games.
Cincinnati has covered the spread in four of its last five games when facing Detroit.
Cincinnati has won five straight games when playing in Detroit.

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Compare the latest NFL Odds from the best sportsbooks before placing a bet on this week's games.
Check out the North Carolina Sportsbooks just before they launch legal online sports betting.

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