Bengals at Browns odds, betting trends, expert picks and predictions

We finally get real NFL football that matters, which means people have football games to gamble on again. We will take a look at how the oddsmakers and experts feel about this battle of Ohio between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns.

Odds

The Bengals are currently 1.5-point favorites against the Browns in Cleveland, according to DraftKings Sportsbook. Many will point to the fact that since Zac Taylor has taken over the Bengals as the head coach that this team has not won in Cleveland. Last year was actually the first time Joe Burrow has led the team to a win over the Browns in his career.

To be fair, the game in Cleveland in 2021 was Week 17, where the Bengals played mostly backups after locking up the division the week prior.

There is still some truth to the idea that this Browns team has had the Bengals’ number, despite the Bengals being the obviously more successful team the past two seasons. Given that history, it is surprising to see the oddsmakers view this as Cincinnati’s game to lose.

Betting trends

• Cincinnati is 13-4 against the spread in its last 17 games.
• The total has gone UNDER in six of Cincinnati’s last nine games.
• Cincinnati is 10-1 straight up in its last 11 games.
• Cincinnati is 13-4 against the spread in their last 17 games against Cleveland.
• Cincinnati is 1-5 straight up in their last six games against Cleveland.
• Cincinnati is 5-1 against the spread in its last six games on the road.
• Cincinnati is 0-5 straight up in its last five games when playing on the road against Cleveland.
• Cincinnati is 8-1 straight up in its last nine games against an opponent in the AFC.
• The total has gone UNDER in Cincinnati’s last five games played in September.
• The total has gone UNDER in four of Cincinnati’s last six games played in week 1.

Bet on the NFL at DraftKings Sportsbook.

Expert predictions

• CBS Sports has four of their eight experts taking the Bengals
• Three of ESPN’s six experts who have made picks are sticking with the Bengals
• 75% of The Athletic’s experts are picking Cincinnati
• According to NFL Picks Watch, 74% of all the predictions logged are in favor of Who Dey!

The experts seem to be pretty split. That could have to do with some experts selecting the Browns to essentially be a dark horse team this season that will surprise people. There is also the Browns' recent history that’s working against the Bengals as well. Burrow also missed most of training camp again, and that led to a slow start last season.

It is easy for an expert to justify an upset for the home team in Week 1. It would probably be a different outcome if they were asked who the better team was. This could be an early notice to the NFL that this Bengals team is ready to get over that hump on its way to a Lombardi trophy.

Here’s who are staff is taking this week.