Bengals Welcome Broncos For Monday Night Football
Visiting the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night, Peyton Manning, C.J. Anderson and the Denver Broncos need a win to stay in the hunt for the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
In a rare Monday Night Football matchup between relevant sides, the Denver Broncos travel to Ohio to face the Cincinnati Bengals in a potential playoff preview.
Kickoff at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET.
While Denver has already secured its postseason berth, Cincinnati finds itself right in the middle of a playoff dogfight. With both the division title and a wild card up for grabs, the Bengals need a win on Monday.
The Story So Far
Denver (11-3, 4-3 road) locked up the AFC West title last weekend with a win over the San Diego Chargers. Peyton Manning and Co. are still looking to finish with the No. 1 seed in the AFC though, meaning they’ll be up for Monday’s game.
With the New England Patriots edging the New York Jets on Sunday afternoon, the Broncos know anything less than a win against the Bengals will see the side cede the conference top spot once and for all. That in turn means that the road to Super Bowl XLIX will likely go through Foxborough.
The Broncos face a home game against the Oakland Raiders next weekend, while the Patriots welcome a tough-to-beat Buffalo Bills side. You have to consider the Broncos to have an advantage there, so John Fox will look to give his side one more shot at catching the Patriots on Monday.
Cincinnati (9-4-1, 4-2-1 home) enters Monday night’s game knowing that a loss could prove very costly.
Right now, the Bengals hold a slight edge in the AFC North, but with the Pittsburgh Steelers winning at home over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, the Bengals would fall behind the Steelers in the standings if they were to lose on Monday.
A loss wouldn’t prove the end of the line for Marv Lewis’ side. The Bengals could still win the division with a victory over the Steelers next weekend. A loss in that game too would put the side’s wild card chances in jeopardy also.
Basically, to make it as simple as possible; the Bengals need one win in two games to secure a playoff berth.
Head-to-Head
Since the sides first met in 1968, Denver is 19-8 against Cincinnati.
The Broncos have won four straight in the series and are 15-3 against the Bengals since 1977.
Cincinnati’s last win over Denver came on October 25, 2004. Coincidentally, that was the only time the two sides met on Monday Night Football.
Denver is 7-6 all-time when playing at Cincinnati, and has won each of its last two trips to the Queen City.
The two sides have met just twice before in the month of December (1969, 2006). Denver won both of those games.
Injury Report
Denver will be without linebackers Brandon Marshall (foot) and Danny Trevathan (knee). The latter is expected to be placed on injured reserve.
Running backs Ronnie Hillman (ankle) and Juwan Thompson (hip/knee) are listed as questionable, as is cornerback Kayvon Webster (shoulder) and tackles Ryan Clady (thigh) and Paul Cornick (toe).
Cincinnati tight end Tyler Eifert (elbow) is eligible to return from the DL, but is unlikely to play.
Wide receivers Brandon Tate (illness) and James Wright (knee) are both listed as questionable, as is linebacker Emmanuel Lamur (hamstring).
Check out the full injury list
Will Andy Dalton earn his first prime time win on Monday night?
Betting Report
Below you’ll find Betting Sports’ breakdown of odds and betting trends.
Denver Broncos vs. Cincinnati Bengals odds for 12/22/2014
Moneyline: Denver (-164) opened as the favorite over Cincinnati (+148) on the moneyline.
The Broncos have won four on the bounce but are just 1-3 on the road against non-divisional opponents this season.
The Bengals have won six of the last eight but have lost two straight at home. Both of those losses came against divisional opponents.
The Broncos have won eight of the last 10 head-to-head meetings between the sides, and have dropped just three games (from 18) to the Bengals since 1977.
The Bengals are 0-2 in prime time games this season, while Denver is 4-0.
Spread: The spread opened at 3.5.
Neither Denver (7-7-0 ATS) nor Cincinnati (7-6-1 ATS) has fared particularly well against the spread this season.
The Broncos are 4-3-0 ATS on the road and 6-6-0 ATS when considered the favorite.
The Bengals are 3-3-1 ATS at home and 5-1-0 ATS when playing as an underdog. Could that come into the team’s favor on Monday?
Both sides are 3-3-0 ATS in their last six games.
Each side is 5-5-0 ATS in the last 10 head-to-head meetings.
Total: The total opened at 48.5.
The Broncos (8-6-0 O/U) have favored the over this season, while the Bengals (5-9-0 O/U) have favored the under.
The total has gone under in five of Cincinnati’s last six games, and four of Denver’s last five.
The over has paid out in six of the last nine head-to-head meetings though.
Monday Night Football has been a haven for the over this season, with 12 of the 16 broadcasts witnessing the over pay out. That being said, two of the last three Monday night games have seen the under pay out.
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