Vikings at Bengals: Picks, Spreads, Odds, and Predictions

It is not really a must win for playoff chances, but to keep pace on playing the playoffs at home, the Bengals need to win. A loss means the Bengals have their backs against the wall in the week 17 game against Baltimore. The Bengals are currently 8 point favorites and the over under is at 47.5.

Name	Pick	Score	Blurb
Elliot Harrison - NFL.com		27 - 24	Can Matt Cassel do it again? Is the Pope Polish? (No, he's not.) Against the Eagles last week, Cassel was 26-of-35 passing for 382 yards and two touchdowns, and he also added one rushing score -- making him a fantasy monster. And he was able to do it with Matt Asiata. Hey, if you can't win games with Matt Asiata in your backfield (30 carries for -- cough -- 51 yards), well, you just can't win. That's what I always say. Cassel should be able to work against a Bengals secondary that is hurting, but in Cincinnati, with the playoffs on the line, look for the home team to prevail. Bengals offensive coordinator Jay Gruden must get rookies Tyler Eifert and Giovani Bernard involved early. Gruden's play-calling has been as loved around Cincinnati as an autographed John Taylor football.
Don Banks - SI		34 - 17	The Bengals just don't believe in making things easy on themselves, and now they've gone and turned this AFC North race into a nail-biter. The Matt Cassel-led Vikings have done some impressive damage in the past month, and Cincy should be very wary after watching what happened to the red-hot Eagles last week in the Metrodome. But the Bengals are unbeaten at home this year, and Marvin Lewis should now have his team's full attention and focus as the playoffs threaten to slip away.
Pete Prisco - CBS		33 - 17	The Bengals laid an egg in Pittsburgh this past week, so look for a focused team here. They are 6-0 at home and that will show up in terms of their offense. They score a lot more at their place. Minnesota has defensive woes. Look for the Bengals to get an easy one.
Coley Harvey - ESPN		21 - 17	Angered by being dominated on national television last Sunday night, the Bengals want to issue a statement. Minnesota will hang tough, though, in a physical, AFC North-style contest.
Ben Goessling - ESPN		31 - 27	The Vikings are playing with some confidence after winning two of their past three, but the combination of Cincinnati's run defense and A.J. Green on offense will be a little too much.
Greg Cote - Miami Herald		30 - 24	As Dolfans root for a Cincy loss here, the Bengals falling to Pittsburgh last week makes this game very important for the home team as it tries to nail down a playoff berth. But Minny presented itself as spoiler-qualified by upsetting Philly last week. Vikes are 0-6-1 away and 'Gals 6-0 at home, but Purples should have Adrian Peterson back and should keep it close.
Mike Florio - ProFootballTalk		24 - 13	Relegated to spoiler, the Vikings have played that role well, tying the Packers, beating the Bears, and upending the Eagles. But Cincinnati hasn't lost at home this year, and they are one of the best teams in the league when properly focused. They'll be focused on Sunday.
Michael David Smith - ProFootballTalk		34 - 21	The Vikings are actually looking like a decent team with Matt Cassel at quarterback, while the Bengals turned in a lousy effort last week against the Steelers. But with the Bengals suddenly in danger of missing the playoffs, Marvin Lewis will have his team ready for a big game.

Then there are the experts that pick the winners without a score projection or a writeup. Some of those are here:

Media Guy	Pick
Marcus Allen - ESPN
Mike Golic - ESPN
Merril Hoge - ESPN
Ron Jaworski - ESPN
Chris Mortensen - ESPN
Adam Schefter - ESPN
Mark Schlereth - ESPN
Tom Jackson - ESPN
Keyshawn Johnson - ESPN
Mike Ditka - ESPN
Chris Carter - ESPN
Jason La Canfora - CBS
Josh Katzowitz - CBS
Ryan Wilson - CBS

When I ran the simulation at WhatIfSports.com, The Bengals find themselves on the right side of the score board.