NFL odds: Bengals, Dolphins meet in prime time trying to reach .500
The Bengals (1–2) will be trying to avoid losing their third straight home game dating back to last year’s playoffs when they host the Dolphins (1–2) on Thursday night as seven-point favorites at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Cincinnati is coming off a 29–17 loss to the defending Super Bowl champion Broncos as 3.5-point home chalk last Sunday, and they have dropped 11 of the past 13 meetings with the Dolphins.
However, Miami has struggled to an 0–7 mark against the spread in its last seven games when playing teams with losing records. That includes the Browns, who last week forced the Dolphins to rally for a 30–24 victory in overtime after Miami held a 24–13 lead early in the fourth quarter.
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The Dolphins failed to beat the line as 9.5-point home favorites but will be looking to beat Cincinnati for the fourth straight time (both straight up and against the spread) in their prime-time matchup on Thursday.
The teams last met in 2013, when Miami won 22–20 in overtime on a safety after defensive end Cameron Wake sacked Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton in the end zone. Dalton threw for 338 yards in that meeting but was picked off three times and failed to find the end zone through the air.
Dalton struggled against the Broncos last week as well, finishing with 206 yards, no touchdowns and an interception after entering the game as the NFL’s leader in passing yardage. He did rush for 40 yards on six carries.
The Dolphins have won the past two meetings in Cincinnati by a combined 12 points, and they are battle-tested on the road following visits to Seattle and New England in the first two weeks of the season.
Even though they lost both games, the Dolphins led the Seahawks in the final minutes and played the Patriots tough in the second half after knocking quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo out of the game in the second quarter.
The Bengals are 0-3-1 ATS in their last four home games overall after going 5-1-1 against the spread in their previous seven at Paul Brown Stadium, according to the OddsShark NFL Database. The under has cashed in each of the teams’ past three meetings.
