The Cincinnati Bengals knocked off one of their former offensive coordinators-turned-head coach with a beating of Hue Jackson and the Browns on Sunday. They’ll get another chance when they face Jay Gruden and the Washington Redskins in a Week 8 contest across the pond as the NFL continues its International Series. Gruden was the Bengals OC from 2011 to 2013 and helped mold Andy Dalton into one of the top quarterbacks in the league. Gruden gets his first crack at his former team and mentor.
This contest in Week 8 of the regular season will go down Sunday, October 30, 2016, at 9:30 a.m. ET at Wembley Stadium in London, England.
NFL Odds at BookMaker.eu
Washington Redskins +3
Cincinnati Bengals -3
Over/Under 46
Odds Analysis
While the Bengals are technically the home team, this amounts to a neutral site game with it taking place in London. Cincy has gotten 87 percent of the early wagers with the squares pushing the spread up a point to Bengals -3. We’re unlikely to see much more movement. A resurgent Bengals offense is good news for over/under bettors, who like the over to the tune of 73 percent of the wagers. Each of the last three games played at Wembley Stadium cashed the over.
Injury Report
Josh Norman – Washington’s prized offseason acquisition left the last game with a concussion and his status for Sunday isn’t known at this time. But a long flight to London and a short week make it likely he won’t play. The Lions took advantage of his absence by driving down the field for a late score to snatch a win from the Skins on Sunday.
Andrew Whitworth – Entered the league’s concussion protocol following Sunday’s game. If Whitworth is unavailable, the Bengals struggling offensive line will be in more trouble. Entering last week’s game, Whitworth was the third-ranked tackle according to Pro Football Focus and his run blocking opened big holes for Jeremy Hill.
Matchup to Watch
The Bengals returned to basics against Cleveland and the offensive strategy was a huge success in a blowout win. Cincinnati had a mismatch with A.J. Green facing a Browns secondary without its top cornerback in Joe Haden, and they exploited the absence by targeting Green plenty. Dalton completed 19 passes with nearly half going to Green, who caught each of his eight targets for 169 yards and a ridiculous touchdown catch on a Hail Mary at the end of the first half.
Sure the Bengals were facing the league’s 29th ranked overall defense, but the offense had struggled and hadn’t scored more than 23 points in any game this year. The Bengals had 21 by halftime and amassed 559 yards. It was the kind of outing we came to expect from the Bengals, but they just haven’t delivered. It’ll be a stiffer challenge, but the Bengals are likely to face a Skins team without its top cornerback after Norman left the last outing with a concussion. Just the presence of Tyler Eifert on the field helped the Bengals in the passing game. He caught just one pass, but he is a threat that has to be accounted for.
Free ATS Pick
He had a minor stat line but don’t underestimate what Eifert means to the Bengals’ offense. It’s no coincidence that they averaged just 18 points per game with him sitting out the first six contests. And it’s no coincidence that Cincy scored 31 points in his first game. Eifert provides that comfort level for Dalton and is such a big agile target that he deserves the respect of the defense. Eifert is also a fantastic blocker and the Bengals ran for 271 yards on Sunday. He’s not the cure-all, but Dalton and the offense are stronger with him in the lineup.
The Redskins feel they let one slip away against the Lions and with the way the NFC East is playing, losses like that will be costly further down the road. The run game hurt with Matt Jones fumbling twice and his issues with ball security got him a seat on the sideline. The Bengals are susceptible to the run, but with Jones putting the ball on the turf, he essentially negates the only advantage Washington has. The Bengals have a chance to even their record before the bye and it’s too good to pass up.
NFL Odds: Bengals 27, Redskins 24
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