Cincinnati at Indianapolis
Time: NOON (FOX)
Spread: IND -9.5
Total: 46.5
Odds c/o Bet Online
The Indianapolis Colts fell to 3-2 last week, snapping a three-game win streak, as it fell 11-19 to the Cleveland Browns. The Colts return home this week to host the Cincinnati Bengals as 9.5-point favorites. The Colts still trail undefeated Tennessee by one full game, but this should be a chance to hold or perhaps tie for the Division lead should Indy prevail. The game will kick off at Noon (EST) on Fox, with an over/under set at 46.5 points according to NFL oddsmakers at Bet Online.
IND
The Indianapolis Colts had been rolling since its Week 1 loss to Jacksonville. It knocked off Minnesota, New York (Jets), and the Chicago Bears, before falling in Week 5 to the Cleveland Browns. Despite holing its previous three opponents to a mere 29 points, it surrendered 32 to the Browns in the loss.
Much of the struggles of the Colts offense can be attributed to the struggles (most of QB Philip Rivers). Rivers threw 21 of 33, but did not land a TD while throwing two picks. The rush game did not help much, accounting for just 68 yards on 18 carries, though Jonathan Taylor did rush for a touchdown on his 57 yards. T.Y. Hilton and Marcus Johnson combined for 122 yards, but the pair caught just 9 of 13 passes, as Hilton was responsible for all four missed looks.
The defensive effort was headed by the two interceptions, one at the hands of Anthony Walker and the other from Bobby Okereke. Okereke really did a lot, too. He also led the Colts in tackles (10) and had 1/2 a tackle for loss. Rock Ya-Sin also had eight tackles (six solos).
All in all, the defense while creating plays, just had too many problems from both Kareem Hunt and Jarvis Landry. Both had rather big games, though Hunt did manage just 3.6 yards-per-carry on his 20 attempts. Overall, the Colts did a good job on Baker Mayfield, forcing him into two picks and a fumble, yet it just was not enough with the Colts’ offensive turnovers and the lack of execution in several red-zone plays for the Browns.
CIN
The Cincinnati Bengals fell to 1-3-1 after a trouncing from the Baltimore Ravens in Week 5. The Bengals have had its struggles, particularly offensively where it manages to rank in the bottom third of both passing and rushing offense—part of the reason the Bengals are averaging just 20.4 points per game. The defense has been merely average, which is not enough to compensate in this case.
Joe Burrow has done a fairly nice job from The QB position, though. He has completed 65.2 percent of his looks for 1,304 yards and six touchdowns to his three interceptions. The 22 sacks are troubling (4.4 per game), but overall Burrow has been pretty solid. He has also rushed 23 times at a 3.7 yard-per average and has rushed for a touchdown. His top backfield option, Joe Mixon, has been disappointing somewhat.
While Mixon has 101 of the team’s 132 rush attempts, he manages just under four yards-per-carry and no one else is really stepping up to make the longer plays. Giovani Bernard could perhaps, but he has seen just four handoffs and averaged 7.3 yards on that quartet of plays. The best Bengal offensively has easily been Tyler Boyd, who holds the team leads in yardage (362), total catches (32), and has one of the team’s six receiving touchdowns. Tee Higgins is the No. 2 option and leads the team with two touchdowns. Overall, the Bengals must find a way to stimulate more offensive options to diversify its playcalling, while the defense has its work cut out for it too, in terms of forcing more miscues and helping the struggling offense have a chance to outscore its opponents. Thus far, an average defense is not nearly enough for Cincinnati.
