The Cincinnati Bengals will start the 2016 regular season as men on a mission – whether that makes them NFL betting online favorites against the New York Jets on September 11th at MetLife Stadium has yet to be seen. In any case, these are the football betting odds for these two teams’ season opener:
Bengals -2 (-110) 42 (-110)
Jets +2 (-110) 42 (-110)
The Bengals seemed poised to get their first postseason win in 26 years versus the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2015 wild card round. To put it in perspective, the last team Cincinnati defeated in a playoff game were the Houston Oilers, whom fans may now know as the Tennessee Titans. Unfortunately for the Cincinnati Bengals, unnecessary roughness penalty on LB Vontaze Burfict followed by unsportsmanlike conduct by Adam Jones put a shocking end to Cinci’s aspirations.
Wait, Pacman Jones was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct? Like Vizzini would say, inconceivable! Incidentally, Burfict will miss the Jets game – as well as two other regular season games – for repeated violations of player safety rules, including a hit on the Steelers Antonio Brown in the aforementioned playoff game.
Though a segment of the Bengals fans who dabble in some NFL betting online were asking for head coach Marvin Lewis’s head on a stake – and perhaps with reason; his seven playoff losses are the most of any coach who has never won a playoff game – he will be returning for a 14th season. The problem with Lewis is he’s a regular season coach; Cincinnati needs a postseason coach. Be that as it may, Lewis will have starting QB Andy Dalton at his disposal once again; Dalton missed the last three regular season games and the one playoff game due to a broken thumb. And it was his hitchhiking thumb, too.
Dalton threw 255 of 386 (66.1%) for 3250 yards and 25 TDs in 2015. However, only one of the Bengals’ top three wide receivers will be returning. A.J. Green led Cincinnati with 1297 receiving yards and 10 TDs on 86 receptions. Marvin Jones signed with the Detroit Lions, and Mohamed Sanu did likewise with the Atlanta Falcons (though tight end Tyler Eifert had more receptions, yards, TDs than Sanu).
Dalton’s new targets include Brandon LaFell and rookie Tyler Boyd. LaFell posted 37 receptions and 515 yards with no TDs in 2015 with the Patriots, and Boyd caught the ball 85 times for 873 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns in his junior season with Pittsburgh Panthers last year.
As for the Jets, NFL betting fans can at the very least expect a healthy team to take the field versus the Bengals. Wide receiver Brandon Marshall and LB David Harris should be fully recovered from their respective hip and shoulder injuries. Muhammad Wilkerson, Leonard Williams and Sheldon Richardson have the potential of becoming the top defensive line triad in the league, but the O-line is not one to fill starting QB Ryan Fitzpatrick with lots of confidence – although he should have become used to that last season.