Cincinnati at Miami

There is a new sheriff in town in the AFC North and it is the Cincinnati Bengals. Behind their maturing quarterback, they have taken charge at 6-2. This was a conference dominated by Pittsburgh and Baltimore for years, but Cincinnati is now king. The Bengals offense piled up 49 points last week against a tough Jet's defense. That runs their total to 103 in their last three games. Andy Dalton has emerged as a down-field threat, having thrown for 337+ yards in each of the last three games. His passer rating has been well over 100 in all three, raising it to 99 for the season as he has thrown for 11 TD's and just two INT's. Miami has had defensive issues after opening the season holding the punch-less Browns to 10 points. Since then, each of their last six opponents have gotten to 20 or more. The Dolphins were 3-0 to start the season, but have now lost and failed to cover each of their last four. Under Marvin Lewis, the Bengals are 10-4 straight-up following a game in which they kept an opponent in single figures. The Lewis-led Bengals are also 18-9 straight-up when facing a bad passing defense like Miami’s (one that allows 235+ passing yards per game). Cincy has scored 30+ points nine times the past three seasons. So far, they are 7-1 straight-up in their next game. This could be close but I don’t see Cincinnati losing this game. Take the Bengals at the short price on the moneyline. I also like the OVER tonight. Not only is the Bengals offense clicking, but the Dolphins have scored 17 points or more in every game and their home games this season have averaged 48 points per game. The Fins have played OVER in five of their last six games. Play Cincinnati on the moneyline and take the OVER.