Buffalo Bills vs Cincinnati Bengals
A huge AFC showdown will take place in the Week 9 Sunday Night Football matchup when the Cincinnati Bengals host the Buffalo Bills as small home favorites. The Bengals are coming off an impressive 31-17 upset win over the San Francisco 49ers as 4.5-point road underdogs last Sunday off their bye week, extending their winning streak to three games.
The Bills will have some extra time off after defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-18 but failing to cover as 10-point home favorites in the Week 8 Thursday Night game.
Latest Betting Notes: Bills
Buffalo will return to the site of last year’s Week 17 game at Cincinnati that was cancelled following Damar Hamlin’s heart attack on the field. The Bills were never the same team after that happened and ended up losing to the Bengals 27-10 in a divisional playoff matchup at home 20 days later. This is a new year and a new team even though most of the same players will be back for the rematch.
Hamlin will not likely be one of them as he has made it on the field for only two games so far this season. Regardless, Buffalo’s defense has not been the same since losing a trio of starters in linebacker Matt Milano, defensive tackle DaQuan Jones and cornerback Tre’Davious White due to injuries.
Latest Betting Notes: Bengals
Cincinnati appears to be back as a legitimate Super Bowl contender following a rough start that saw the team lose its first two games and three of the first four. Much of the early struggles were attributed to quarterback Joe Burrow’s recovery from a calf injury, but he looks as good as ever now with the extra time off he got during the bye.
At San Francisco, Burrow completed 28-of-32 passes for 283 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions, hitting 19 in a row at one point. Against Buffalo in the last meeting, he also completed 23-of-36 for 242 with two touchdowns and no picks while adding 31 rushing yards on six carries. This upcoming game will provide him with another good test.
The Keys to Victory: Bills
While Burrow thrived in the last meeting, Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen struggled. Allen completed 25-of-42 passes for 264 yards versus Cincinnati with no touchdowns and one interception, although he did have eight carries for 26 yards on the ground and scored a rushing touchdown.
But he had home-field advantage in that matchup as well and will need to perform much better in this spot if the Bills are going to win consecutive games for the first time since they started 3-0. Keep in mind, they are 0-4 ATS in splitting their last four games SU, so even in their two wins during that stretch they did not play particularly well. This revenge spot should motivate them and bring out the best in them.
The Keys to Victory: Bengals
If Cincinnati is truly back to being an elite team, this is yet another opportunity to prove it. The Bengals took advantage of a beat-up 49ers team playing on short rest, and now they will take on a rested Bills squad that will be fired up to beat them.
Burrow is the true difference maker in this equation and has the moxie that Allen seems to lack despite being equally talented. Cincinnati has won nine of its last 10 home games while Buffalo has gone 0-4 ATS in its past four prime-time appearances. The Bills tend to wilt under the pressure when the spotlight is on them, which could be another key to victory here.
