New York at Cincinnati

Manning or Palmer? Draftee #1 goes up against draftee #2. Palmer is the answer- at least right now. Manning had his first good game of the season last week against The Steelers. That was impressive but I'm not ready to say he's there yet. Palmer has had much more game-time experience and has looked very good for two straight games, not just one. He's thrown for nearly 3,000 yards and 18 touchdowns, completing over 60% of his passes. He missed last week due to injury but prior to that he like Super Man against Baltimore and New England (two great defenses) as the Bengals covered the spread in both games. He's expected to start again in this game. Complementing Palmer will be Rudi Johnson who hasn't gotten a lot of attention this year but has quietly posted 1,324 yards and will surpass Corey Dillon's franchise record 1,435 yards this week. Add in the explosive Chad Johnson and you have a very formidable offense, one that posted 38 points per game in the last three games with Palmer at the helm. Problem is, their defense has surrendered nearly as many. But, against the still-learning Eli Manning, I think they'll be able to hold the Giants down enough here. Prior to last week's anomoly, the Giants have averaged under 10 points per game since week 10. While 1-2 so far this year, interconference home favorites in their last few games of the season are typically very good bets (71% ATS including an incredible 9-1 last year). Four stars on the Bengals in a blowout.