BSNblog

Yes, we’ll admit to suggesting a lean earlier on TCU laying 40 points against a team (UNLV) whose road supporters are so broke they couldn’t even afford to get arrested.

However, did you seriously expect to find us laying more points in this game (48) than the Broncos are averaging this betting season (40.9)? In fact, the Blue Man Group has only surpassed that number once in its last fi ve games (52-35 at San Diego State) and stands 2-4 ATS as favorites of more than 40 points.

However, with that being said, the Broncos are 6-2 ATS as LHG chalk while the ‘Wobos’ are 1-6 ATS in the BSNblog stats figured the Bulldogs might not get a friendly sendoff as they bid adieu to the WAC for the MWC.

It’s rather ironic that this season-ender takes place in Mountain West Country as the Aztecs get a fi rst-hand look at their new neighbors.

These two California natives haven’t met in nine years and we’re not sure that Hill is happy to see the Aztecs again as he has yet to grab the cash in three career matchups (1-2 SU, 0-3 ATS). Fresno’s 1-5 ATS log in LRG’s compared to Diego’s 6-2 ATS mark in LHG’s mark sure has us giddy, though.

With the Bulldogs’ four-year bowl streak snapped, and the Aztecs needing two more wins to match last season’s 9-4 record, we can only look one way tonight – and that’s to the south of California. No fun in the sun for the Bulldogs today.

Sportsbooks currently have the Broncos listed as 48½-point favorites against the New Mexico, and the game's total is sitting at 61.

New Mexico most recently:

When playing in December are 1-6

When playing on turf are 0-10

After being outgained are 1-9

When playing within the conference are 2-8

Boise State most recently:

When playing in December are 6-4

When playing on turf are 9-1

After outgaining opponent are 9-1

When playing within the conference are 8-2

Tebowmania keeps rolling right along as Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos found a way to beat the San Diego Chargers in week 12. But you have to look a little deeper at the Tebow magic to uncover its secrets. With the notable exception of the incredibly impressive victory over the Oakland Raiders in week nine, the Broncos have been riding a streak against sub-par teams with terrible offenses. Nowhere in the Tebow lineage will you find the Packers, Lions or Saints. Tebow actually faced the Lions in week eight and was pounded 45-10. It is the Denver defense that is winning these games. A quarterback with ability would have made everyone of these wins a blowout. Tebow turns them into overtime thrillers.

The price per head Vikings’ fans are curious to see where the Minnesota fortunes lie after the 2012 draft. Christian Ponder will be given a second chance at being the Minnesota starting quarterback in 2012 if only because of the conditions under which he won the pay per head starting job in the first place. After an incredibly abbreviated training camp, Ponder watched as veteran Donovan McNabb started the season. After four weeks of less than great play from McNabb, the Vikings turned to Ponder. After an extended stint as the Vikings’ starter, it is easy to say that Ponder is a bust. But Minnesota will give the kid an entire offseason and training camp to improve before making that determination.

Denver Broncos

The Denver offense is 31st in the league in passing and 25th overall. No matter how much magic a team has going for it, those numbers will eventually start to cause problems. Despite a quarterback that can only play effectively for five minutes a game and a head coach that won’t battle for a half yard in overtime, the Denver defense has managed to get better and better each week. A 5 dimes review of the Bronco’s defense shows a unit that has continually set up Tim Tebow for game-winning drives and Tebow can only capitalize some of the time. Tebowmania will die out when Tebow starts losing. But that won’t be this week.

Minnesota Vikings

People forget that the Vikings are getting hammered by injuries. Things are so bad that defensive end Jared Allen had to take over as the long-snapper when regular long-snapper Cullen Loeffler was injured. It is just one in a long list of injuries that have conspired to make the Vikings non-competitive. All-pro running back Adrian Peterson is gone for what appears to be the rest of the season, but the Vikings still battled in week 12 against the Falcons. But, in the end, there just isn’t enough in Minnesota to stop Tebow and the Broncos.

The Bottom Line

The NFL is seeing a lot of surprises in the AFC this year and the Broncos are definitely one of them. Tebowmania could be a fixture this season in the AFC, but don’t look for it to change the course of NFL history.

BSNblog Pick: Denver Broncos

Buffalo Bills @ New York Jets (-8)

Sunday, 1:00 PM ET

While the Jets’ struggles are undoubtedly the bigger surprise of the two AFC East rivals set to clash this Sunday, that doesn’t mean that Buffalo’s collapse isn’t significant. A Bills’ team that opened the year with five wins through their first seven games has now lost three straight, including two against division rivals, and a second loss to New York will all but eliminate them from postseason contention. Unlike at the beginning of the season when Buffalo was forcing turnovers and capitalizing with an efficient offense, Ryan Fitzpatrick and company are now the ones turning the ball over while the defense has had trouble stopping anyone with 79 points allowed in their past two games alone. Meanwhile, the Jets’ supposedly elite defense has struggled to remain a top-10 unit, and their inability to prevent Denver Broncos’ quarterback Tim Tebow to score a late touchdown in a 17-13 loss last Thursday was the exclamation mark on a tough year. The fact that quarterback Mark Sanchez and the Jets’ offense wasn’t able to put that game away earlier is another story altogether, and while New York should be able to get the job done this Sunday at home, it is hard to ignore such a big sportsbook reviews spread for a team that has been so inconsistent this year.

NFL Betting Picks : Buffalo Bills + 8

Cleveland Browns @ Cincinnati Bengals (-7.5)

Sunday, 1:00 PM ET

Making the postseason in the NFL often comes down to being able to win the games that you are expected to, and that is something that the Bengals have been able to do all year. While consecutive losses to the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers are proof that Cincinnati is not ready to compete with the best in the AFC, they have put themselves in position to have a chance by winning games they are favored in, including a 27-17 win against the Cleveland Browns in their season opener. Rookie quarterback Andy Dalton has progressed well as the unquestioned leader on offense, but it is the Bengals’ defense that has allowed them to remain competitive in every game. Cincinnati currently leads the AFC Wild Card race but cannot afford a third straight loss against a division rival, but that shouldn’t be an issued against a Cleveland team that has lost three of their last four and haven’t recorded a pay head victory against a team with a winning record so far this season.

NFL Betting Pick: Cincinnati Bengals – 7.5

Neither the Arizona Cardinals nor the St. Louis Rams are in the running for the Andrew Luck sweepstakes as the Indianapolis Colts have a lock on that first draft spot at 0-10. The Cardinals came into this season with some very high expectations. Even though starting running back Tim Hightower was lost to the Washington Redskins, the Cardinals still have running back Beanie Wells. New quarterback Kevin Kolb was supposed to create a prolific duo with wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald. But a weak offensive line has kept Kolb injured for part of the season and running for his life the other part. Beanie Wells has also had injury problems that have limited his effectiveness. It has not been the year the Cardinals were expecting.

The St. Louis Rams fell even further than the Cardinals in 2011. The price per head sports fans in St. Louis were genuinely excited about the prospects of improving on a 2010 that saw the Rams challenge for the NFC West title. But quarterback Sam Bradford has not developed as hoped, and the St. Louis offensive line is even worse than Arizona’s. The price per head bookie action in St. Louis was supposed to see the Rams threatening the 49ers for the NFC West divisional title. But the Rams are averaging only 12 points a game on offense while giving up an average of nearly 25 points a game on defense. That difference is not going to win you a lot of games in the NFL.

Arizona Cardinals

A bodog review of the Cardinals’ offense shows a unit that is capable of moving the ball but incapable of scoring points. Kevin Kolb’s injury problems have limited him to only seven games this season, and in those seven games Kolb has thrown only eight touchdown passes. To make matters worse, Kolb has also thrown eight interceptions. Back-up quarterback John Skelton has three starts this season and he has thrown four touchdowns and five interceptions. The Cardinals want to believe that Kolb is the answer at quarterback. But until Kolb can show a sustained ability to put the ball into the endzone, he remains part of the problem as opposed to being an answer.

St. Louis Rams

Second-year quarterback Sam Bradford is definitely suffering from the sophomore jinx. He has started eight out of the Rams’ 10 games so far, and only has five touchdown passes. Last season, Bradford gave all of the NFL fans in St. Louis a reason to hope by throwing 18 touchdown passes in 16 games. But St. Louis fans conveniently forget that Bradford also threw 15 interceptions last season and has thrown five interceptions this season. The Rams are going to need more production from the quarterback position if it wants to win games this year.

The Bottom Line

When the Arizona Cardinals are playing well, it can be a good football team. The St. Louis Rams have not given any indication that it is capable of being a good football team under any conditions. This will be a mess to watch, but the Arizona fans should enjoy the outcome.

BSNblog Pick: Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers @ Detroit Lions (-7)

Sunday, 1:00 PM ET

The Lions were battered and bruised by a physical Bears’ team last weekend, ironically in a similar fashion to the way that their defense had beaten up some of the opposing teams earlier in the year. At 6-3, the Lions are technically still the frontrunners for an NFC Wild Card position, but after losing three of their last four betonline games they cannot afford to slide any further, especially with how tough their upcoming schedule is. Detroit will host the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers before making the trip south to face Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints, so this Sunday’s home date against the 2-7 Panthers is a must-win situation. Carolina’s offense can score a ton, so it will be up to Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson to make sure that they win what should be an offensive battle.

NFL Betting Pick: Detroit Lions -7

Dallas Cowboys (-7.5) @ Washington Redskins

Sunday, 1:00 PM ET

The Cowboys and Redskins are two teams heading in opposite directions at this point in the season, as Washington has lost five straight while Dallas has put together consecutive wins to climb above the .500 mark and to within reach of the division-leading New York Giants. The Cowboys will look to extend their winning streak to three after blowing away the Buffalo Bills in their strongest performance of the year, and this one could provide a similar NFL result considering how poorly the Redskins have played.

NFL Betting Pick: Dallas Cowboys – 7.5

Seattle Seahawks @ St. Louis Rams (-2)

Sunday, 4:05 PM ET

In a division that features three teams with three wins or less, it’s hard to figure out how all four teams are coming off wins. That will change this week for at least one as the Seahawks look to extend their string of consecutive wins against St. Louis, who overcame the Cleveland Browns 13-12 for a hard-earned road win. Many feel that the Rams are better than their record indicates, and while injuries and inconsistent play have hurt them this season, they have the chance to prove they can still compete with consecutive home dates against the Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals. While Seattle has somehow managed to put together consecutive pay head wins, they have never been a great team away from home.

BSNblog Pick: St. Louis Rams - 2

Buffalo Bills fans knew that, eventually, the lack of a quality defense would catch up with the team. The Bills got off to a great start but, as seems to be the custom, as the season wears on the Bills fall further and further out of the playoff hunt. The difference is that, this season, the Bills were at least in the playoff picture up to mid-season. But the Buffalo Bills defense is completely incapable of stopping the run or defending the pass. When the defense is unable to stop the other team’s offense then that puts the Buffalo offense in a desperate situation. The Bills’ offense is forced to abandon its game plan to compensate for the lack of a defense. That is usually when the wheels start coming off for the Bills.

The Miami Dolphins hate these kinds of seasons. Last year, the Bills traveled to Miami for the annual Buffalo-Miami December football game. But this year, the Dolphins have to travel to snowy Buffalo in December. But between now and the December game, the two teams meet for the Miami home game right before Thanksgiving. The Miami Dolphins have won two games in a row and are feeling pretty good about itself. The Buffalo Bills fit the profile of a price per head team that is destined to lose to the Dolphins. The Bills are struggling, unable to play good defense and are out of its offensive rhythm. While the Bills need this game to cling to its slim playoff hopes, the Dolphins need this game to hold on to head coach Tony Sparano’s job.

Buffalo Bills

The price per head bookmaking services are quick to blame Buffalo quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick for the Bills recent troubles because the guy with the brand new $10 million per year contract is an easy target. But none of the Bills’ recent woes can be laid on Fitzpatrick or anyone else on the Buffalo offense. The offense is trying to compensate for the fact that the defense is unable to stop the run or the pass. In week 10, the Dallas Cowboys played offense as though the Buffalo defense was not even on the field. The Buffalo offense is forced to change its game plan to try and hold on to the ball when that is not how the Bills’ offense is most successful. The Bills will have the same problem in this game.

Miami Dolphins

It is a betonline scam to assume that quarterback Matt Moore is the reason why the Dolphins have started winning. The Dolphins just needed a quarterback that did not give the ball away to the other defense. Chad Henne caused turnovers and Matt Moore does not. Right now, that is why the Miami Dolphins are able to win football games.

The Bottom Line

The NFL schedule is not being kind to the Bills for the next two weeks as Buffalo has two tough divisional games on the road in a row. If the Bills lose these two games, the playoffs are pretty much out of the question. But, then again, the Bills’ fans are getting used to not seeing post-season football.

BSNblog Free Pick: Miami Dolphins

Denver Broncos @ Kansas City Chiefs (-3)

Sunday, 1:00 PM ET

NFL fans once again watched in amazement as Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos surprised the world again with a huge 38-24 win over the Oakland Raiders in a road game that many had projected that they had no business even showing up for. The Broncos have installed the read-option that made Tebow so successful when he was winning a national championship with the Florida Gators a couple of years ago. The plan worked perfectly with the sophomore quarterback throwing for 124 yards and two touchdowns while also running for 118 more on an average of 9.8 yards per carry on the ground. While he may never be a top conventional quarterback, there is no doubt that he can still be an effective option in this league if used to his intertops abilities. Meanwhile, the Chiefs are going to need to find a rhythm of their own after having their four-game winning streak come to a sudden halt against the previously winless Miami Dolphins. Kansas City has the weapons on both sides of the ball to get the job done, which they proved during their winning streak, but in this case they may not have enough time to prepare for everything that Tebow brings and rebound from such a poor overall performance the week before in a disheartening loss.

NFL Betting Pick: Denver Broncos + 3

Jacksonville Jaguars (-3) @ Indianapolis Colts

Sunday, 1:00 PM ET

While this sports betting meeting between the Jaguars and Colts won’t hold the same playoff meaning as the aforementioned AFC West rivalry, it does feature two teams that have developed a rivalry of their own competing in the AFC South over the years, and may represent one of those team’s last shot at avoiding a winless season. It may still be too early to call that, but the fact Indianapolis is back home where they lost a couple of close games earlier in the season and playing against the team with the worst win percentage left on their schedule means that this is a game they must win. Of course, just don’t tell that to the Colts’ fans that have forgotten just how good of a quarterback Peyton Manning is and are already calling for his pay head successor in Stanford quarterback and top NFL prospect Andrew Luck.

NFL Betting Pick: Indianapolis Colts + 3

Raiders Chargers Odds – Thursday, 8:20 PM ET

The Raiders (4-4) had a terrible second half in a 38-24 loss at home to Denver, as they were outscored 31-7 after halftime, and sportsbook reviews of this game would tell you that the Raiders beat themselves with three turnovers, 15 penalties and poor special teams that gave up the go-ahead score on a punt return. Carson Palmer was 19-of-35 for 332 yards and three touchdowns, but he was also picked off three times and the Raiders really missed the injured Darren McFadden as they may have gone to the air more than they wanted to. But the defense allowed 299 yards on the ground and that allowed Denver to take pressure off Tim Tebow, which is the opposite of what Oakland wanted to do.

The Chargers (4-4) made their own mistakes in a 45-38 loss at home to Green Bay, as Philip Rivers had three picks to spoil an otherwise great performance. Rivers went 26-of-46 for 385 yards and four touchdowns, but when two of your three touchdowns are run back for scores, your price per head odds are going to drop. The defense had no answer for Aaron Rodgers, but not many teams have as of late. It’s tough to put this loss solely on Rivers, but after he fumbled away a likely win in Kansas City last Monday, San Diego fans may be starting to panic.

Per head odds aren’t up for this game yet as the Raiders are awaiting to hear if McFadden can play this week, but the Chargers should be favored at home with records of 4-1 SU and 2-3 ATS in their last five meetings with the Raiders at Qualcomm Stadium, with four games falling under the posted total (along with a push). If you’re looking for an SU bet, take the Chargers to recover at home as the Raiders make too many unforced errors to make up for an offense that is trying to get Palmer up to speed. The Chargers will also be able to run with Mike Tolbert, and that limits Rivers’ mistakes. Between turnovers and penalties, the Raiders constantly shoot themselves in the foot and that will be the difference on Thursday. Take San Diego in your sports betting picks.

It happened again last week against Missouri as the Tigers overcame a 28-17 deficit to stun A&M in overtime.

Can Mike Sherman’s men bounce back and hang with the resurgent Sooners? Sure, they can.

For openers, Oklahoma unloaded a season’s worth of frustration in their 58-17 humiliation of phony Kansas State and we question whether they can bring the same sort of intensity to this matchup.

The ‘revenge’ players will be all over OU here after A&M shocked the Sooners at College Station last year, winning 33-19 as a 3.5-point dog.

But we’re not about to lay doubles with erratic Oklahoma into a quality foe that’s going to be pretty angry and frustrated themselves after seriously jeopardizing their shot at the league title.

The Aggies also dress up as one of Marc’s ‘Lay Lady Lay’ plays from this year’s BSN Sports News – namely a dog that’s been favored in each of its last seven games in a row.

Not many meaningful numbers to compare – Oklahoma is a weak 5-12 ATS playing at Norman with Big 12 revenge while A&M’s Sherman is 2-0 SU and ATS after losing SU as a favorite of 5 or more points – so we’ll go with our gut here.

The visitors may suffer another ‘Aggie-nizing’ loss on the scoreboard but we think they’ll grab the cash.

But back-to-back shocking defeats have dropped SMU to 5-3 for the season and seriously impaired its chances of returning to the CUSA championship game in December.

The Ponies were outgained by 313 yards in that pair of setbacks (outscored 65-10 by Tulsa and Southern Miss) and have now lost the stat battle in their last three sports news contests.

Hence, where June Jones and company were winning the stats by an average of 192 YPG in their first four games of season, they’re now losing the stats by 81 YPG over the last four contests.

Yikes! The problem lies at the quarterback position where J.J.

McDermott has stepped in for the injured Kyle Padrone. McDermott’s initial success – he enjoyed strong outings in wins over TCU and UCF -– has disintegrated into back-to-back nightmares where he went a combined 33-for-69 with no touchdowns and six interceptions.

Fortunately for Jones, a possible cure has arrived in the form of the porous Tulane defense… though not enough to spark our interest.

Normally, we’d wave ‘goodbye’ to a Green Wave team playing its 10th straight game without rest behind an interim coach, but with the Mustangs a Homecoming favorite – and having tossed a shoe in each of their last two races – we’ll be content to observe from the grandstand.

Another team to avoid until they get back on a winning track…

As a result, the Badgers have dropped two straight Big Ten games and plummeted from No. 6 in the BCS rankings down to No. 20.

However, we don’t look for lightning to strike for a third time against shell- shocked Wisconsin here: Bret Bielema’s Badgers have pocketed the cash in the last five series get-togethers with Purdue and they also own a solid 4-0 ATS mark as conference chalk of 17 or more points.

However, we can’t let such good numbers blind us to the fact that ‘Bubble Bursters’ riding a two-game losing skid are usually bad ATS propositions.

The Boilermakers got derailed at Michigan last week, jumping out to a 7-0 lead before failing to dent the scoreboard again until just 15 seconds remained in the 36- 14 setback.

Purdue got whipped ‘In The Stats’ as well, gaining 311 yards compared to the Wolverines’ 535-yard explosion – and things won’t get easier against this pissed-off bunch of Badgers.

The Boilers need two wins in their final four games to garner their first bowl invitation under head coach Danny Hope but this won’t be one of them.

Still, we think we’ll let Wisky get healthy on its own before jumping back on the Badgers… especially with UW laying almost four touchdowns today. Pass.

But after Northwestern snapped an ugly five-game losing streak with Saturday’s 59-38 bombardment of Indiana, we think the Wildcats are poised to make a strong season-ending run.

Pat Fitzgerald’s felines need wins in three of their last four games to bag their 4th straight bowl appearance – and with home games versus Rice and Minnesota all but assuring two of those victories, NU will need to win here today or against Michigan State in the season finale to keep the streak alive.

Our tireless database says the purple people eaters have a good chance. Fitzgerald is a perfect 3-0 ATS when taking points on the road if his club resides under the .400 win percentage mark, winning two of those games outright – including a 21-17 victory at Iowa as a 20-point dog.

The ‘Cats are also 4-1 ATS in the second of back-to-back road games while Nebraska weighs in with a 0-4 ATS mark playing the second of consecutive homers.

Even worse for the Huskers, head coach Bo Pelini owns an awful 2-11 ATS log as double-digit home chalk off a SU win, including 0-5 ATS if the opponent shows up with a sub .500 record.

With No. 1 quarterback Dan Persa struggling through injuries all season, Fitzgerald has managed to create a two-headed QB tandem – pairing Kain Colter with Persa – that’s actually produced results on the scoreboard.

No doubt Nebraska will be looking for another stifling performance from its defense but we think the hungry Wildcats will bring enough offense to trap the corn boys in a back-and-forth shootout.

Our BSNblog cements it as the schizoid Huskers get caught looking ahead to next week’s showdown with Big Ten-leading Penn State.

Like gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello once sang, it’s time to “start wearing purple”!

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ New Orleans Saints (-8)

Sunday, 1:00 PM ET

One week after absolutely blowing away the Indianapolis Colts 62-7, the Saints were baffled by a St. Louis team that looked as though they would need a miracle just to keep it close in a game where they were outmatched in pretty much every area. Somehow, New Orleans managed to allow backup quarterback AJ Feeley to throw for 175 yards and a touchdown, while failing to slow down running back Stephen Jackson as he rushed for 159 yards and two touchdowns as the obvious big threat on the opposing offense. While Tampa Bay was downright awful in a tough loss to the Bears overseas last week, they did beat the Saints in their first meeting of the season and have plenty more weapons than the Rams did. New Orleans should be able to bounce back and put a terrible performance behind them, but they will have trouble covering a big sports betting number against a talented Buccaneers’ team that is also looking to bounce back.

NFL Betting Pick: Tampa Bay Buccaneers +8

Chicago Bears @ Philadelphia Eagles (-8)

Monday, 8:35 PM ET

It is no secret what Andy Reid has done with the Eagles coming out of their bye week over the pay per head years, which makes it even less of a surprise that Philadelphia dominated the division rival Dallas Cowboys so thoroughly last week. Now comes the even tougher test of preparing for that primetime spotlight once again, with a visit from a Bears’ team that has played pretty well in registering consecutive wins. Neither team can afford a loss right now as they look to re-enter the list of contenders in the NFC, but something has got to give. Philadelphia is still just 1-2 at home and should be the more desperate team to get back to .500. Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler has struggled with turnovers over the past couple of seasons in big NFL picks contests, but even though they won’t win, it’s hard to imagine the Bears not at least keeping it close in an important road game.

NFL Betting Pick: Chicago Bears + 8

The Tulsa Golden Hurricane and the Central Florida Knights will fight on Thursday at Bright House Networks Stadium and the betting game will be televised on CBSC.

We know Tulsa can score (154 points over their last four games) but it’s unlikely that the Golden Hurricane will be able to duplicate the offensive show that Case Keenum and the Cougars put on Rice when we last saw Conference USA in primetime action one week ago.

Not against Central Florida’s 3rd-rated stop-unit! Nonetheless, Tulsa is tied with the Cougars atop the West and this inter-league clash should show the country if they’re ready for that November 26th date in Houston.

Our sports betting news site says they are: after being outgained by 314 yards in their first four contests (don’t forget that Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Boise State dotted that schedule), the Hurricane own a positive 507-yard advantage in their past four games.

Tulsa and UCF have also faced two common foes this college football betting season (SMU, UAB) and it’s the visitors that hold a 258 YPG net edge in these contests.

Bet on College Football and Get a 35% Bonus at BetOnline.

We’re not saying that this trip to Orlando is going to be easy but ‘Halloween Horror Nights’ is over and we just can’t find any reason to back George O’Leary’s disappointing, money burning Knights (4-4 SU, 2-5 ATS).

Even a once promising regular season 7-1 ATS weekday log has fallen by the wayside with a pair of SU and ATS weekday losses already this season (BYU, UAB).

Simply put, we’re not going to outthink ourselves; give us the better team getting points as another Hurricane hits Central Florida.

Central Florida is -1½ point favorites against Tulsa Golden Hurricane and the total is set at 48½.

The Cincinnati Bengals are 5-2 on the season and 4-1 in its last five games. After dismal showings for the past several seasons, the Cincinnati Bengals find itself battling for first place in the AFC North and right in the thick of a playoff hunt. The Bengals’ defense is essentially the same unit that played last year. The biggest differences for Cincinnati are rookie quarterback Andy Dalton and rookie wide receiver A.J. Green. Fans should keep in mind that the Bengals have yet to play the Baltimore Ravens or Pittsburgh Steelers this season. Those four divisional games will decide the Bengals’ fate for this season. But for now, Cincinnati has to deal with a very hungry Tennessee team.

The Titans were not expected to accomplish anything this season. The price per head sports fans in Tennessee watched as the Titans got rid of all of its starting quarterbacks and its head coach in a single off-season. But when the Titans brought in veteran quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, some fans started to take an interest in the team’s chances this year. When the AFC South was thrown up for grabs at the announcement that Colts’ quarterback Peyton Manning would not be playing this season, the Titans players and fans started to get a little hopeful. The Titans have, for the most part, exceeded expectations for this season. But at 4-3, Tennessee needs to start winning more games if it wants to have a shot at the playoffs.

Cincinnati Bengals

The bookie software has revealed that, under all of the drama created last year by the Cincinnati offense, there was a pretty good defense brewing. With prima donnas such as Chad Ochocinco and Carson Palmer no longer in Cincinnati, the offense has dramatically improved. That means that the defense is not on the field nearly as much as it was last year, and it is being utilized like it should be. The defense is rested and potent, which has allowed it to become a top five NFL defense. The offense looks more coherent this season than it did last season. But the scary thing about the Bengals’ offense is that it still has a couple of years to go before it full matures.

Tennessee Titans

The success story in Tennessee is all about quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. The Titans have the highest paid running back in football in Chris Johnson but the worst run offense in the league. After seven games played, Johnson has only been able to manage 302 rushing yards. The NFL picks for this game will be determined by how well the Bengals defense can contain the Tennessee offense. Since Hasselbeck is the Tennessee offense, it becomes a battle between the Titans’ quarterback and the extremely fast and athletic Cincinnati defense.

The Bottom Line

The intertops odds makers have the Titans favored in this game. But the Bengals’ defense is more than capable of shutting down Tennessee’s one-dimensional offense. Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati offense will be able to score points on the Titans’ defense and put this game away by the end of the third quarter.

Pick: Cincinnati Bengals