A Titanic clash in Tennessee – Bengals are in Town. Can the Saints Halt the Niners & Will the Eagles Send Green Bay Packing on SNF?!
Cincinnati Bengals (6-4) @ Tennessee Titans (7-3) (Total points – over 42.5)
A big time matchup in the AFC and a repeat of last season’s playoff clash, when the Bengals upset the Titans en-route to a Super Bowl LVI appearance.
The Titans are running away with the AFC South, but the Bengals find themselves just one game outside of first place in the AFC North. There’s no secret to where the key to this game lies. If Derrick Henry has a big day for Tennessee, they likely win this game. If Cincinnati can contain Henry and the Titans’ run game, this could turn into an entertaining encounter.
The Bengals may be boosted by the return of star wide receiver, Ja’Marr Chase. Having missed 3 games with a hip injury, he’s practised this week and would be a huge addition to their offense, giving them a home run hitter.
Despite an 0-2 start to the season the Bengals have gone 6-2 in their last 8 games and have had the better of recent encounters between these two, taking 3 of the last 4. They have a top 10 defense and a top 10 offense.
The Titans may have unearthed a talent themselves, in the form of rookie wide receiver Treylon Burks – he led the team with 7 catches and passed 100 receiving yards for the first time in his NFL career in last weeks’ win at Green Bay.
It all points to a competitive, hard fought game and with plenty on the line for both teams, expect to see some points on the scoreboard.
PICK: Total Points – Over 42.5
New Orleans Saints (4-7) @ San Francisco 49ers (6-4) (49ers 0ver 25.5 points)
The San Francisco 49ers are a team no one wants to face right now. After demolishing the Arizona Cardinals in Mexico on Monday night, this team appears to be firing on all cylinders. They’re playing good defense and they have more than enough weapons offensively to give opposing teams sleepless nights.
Christian McCaffrey is their high profile star in the backfield, but Elijah Moore is fit and running the ball effectively as well. George Kittle is a constant headache at tight end. While Brandon Aiyuk scored 2 touchdowns on Monday night and that’s before anyone mentions Deebo Samuel!
It all points to a tough task ahead for the New Orleans Saints. They’ve had highlight moments this year – not least, the shut out win over the Raiders but this is an altogether different proposition. That Raiders win aside, they’ve held no one to fewer than 20 points this season. That includes 4 teams in the bottom 10 for scoring this year! Now they have to find a way to stop a 49ers outfit who are averaging over 30 points per game in their last 3 outings?! It won’t happen.
PICK: San Francisco 49ers – Over 25.5 points
Green Bay Packers (4-7) @ Philadelphia Eagles (9-1) (Packers – under 20.5)
Things haven’t gone according to plan this season in Green Bay. They’re offense isn’t playing to the standard we’ve come to expect and consequently their defense has struggled as well. Now they face an Eagles team, holding the best record in the NFL and with the ability to make explosive plays on the ground or in the air. Not to mention a 2nd ranked defense, which recently added, Linval Joseph, Ndamukong Suh and Robert Quinn – they’re all in to win a championship this year.
The Packers will point to the last time they faced an NFC East team though and the fact they overturned a 14 point deficit to win. That, however, appears to be an outlier. That night the Packers committed to the run and had success. The Eagles recent veteran acquisitions have been made precisely to bolster their run defense. That night the Packers turned two interceptions into 14 points. That doesn’t happen every week in the NFL – especially against good teams. That game was at Lambeau Field. This is in Philadelphia.
There will be concern over the Eagles’ last two offensive outings – scoring just 21 and 17 points respectively. Green Bay’s problem all season long has been scoring points themselves. So whatever issues Philadelphia might be encountering right now, it’s difficult to see how the Packers score enough themselves to take advantage. They average just 18.4 points per game – that’s the 7th worst scoring offense in the entire league – and the line for them on this game is too high!
PICK: Green Bay Packers – Under 20.5 Points
