- 1,258
- 86
- 48
Opening line: Bengals -6.5; Over/Under 44
Time: 8:15 p.m. ET Sunday (NBC)
UPDATE 6 P.M. ET THURSDAY: Cincinnati moved up 1.5 points just today at Caesars Sports, going from -8.5 to -10 on the NFL Super Wild Card odds board, before nudging down to -9.5. That's after Cincy opened -6 late Sunday night and steadily climbed to -8.5 by Wednesday afternoon, on the likelihood that Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson (knee) won't play Sunday night.
Point-spread ticket count is 3/1 on the Bengals in the early going. However, spread money is 4/1 on the Ravens, because one bettor came in early with a whopping $880,000 play at +6.5. Obviously, that bettor got the very worst of the number.
“When we opened it Bengals -6, it was a middle-ground number,” Caesars' Adam Pullen said. “That’s what we have to do when we’re not sure who the quarterback is. We want to put a line up, so we have to put it in the middle, so to speak. It’s looking unlikely, but if Jackson were to play, he clearly wouldn’t be 100%. So the line would be lower, but I’m not sure how much lower. I think [Tyler] Huntley is serviceable. He's not going to wow you, but he’ll be a good game manager. If it’s Huntley, the line probably stays the same or comes down a little. If it’s Anthony Brown, the line will creep up more.”
The total opened at 44 and by Wednesday afternoon plunged to 40.5, where it remains tonight. The Over is netting 61% of tickets, but a hefty 92% of cash is on the Under.
UPDATE 10:30 P.M. ET WEDNESDAY: Ravens QB Lamar Jackson wasn't ruled out today, but he again missed practice and is seemingly on track to miss a sixth straight week. Every book moved off that information, including TwinSpires, which jumped from Bengals -6.5 to -8.5.
Point-spread ticket count and money are both in the 3/1 range on Cincinnati.
"The public is hammering the Bengals. And it feels like Bengals moneyline is in every parlay – 8/1 tickets and 15/1 money," TwinSpires director of retail sports Zachary Lucas said.
The total is already down to 40.5 from a 43.5 opener. The Over is getting 59% of early tickets, while 61% of early money is on the Under.
UPDATE MIDNIGHT ET SUNDAY: These two teams are plenty familiar with each other, having slugged it out in today's Week 18 finale. Cincinnati (12-4 SU and ATS) posted a 27-16 victory over Baltimore, narrowly failing to cash as an 11.5-point home chalk.
The third-seeded Bengals are on an 8-0 SU spree entering the postseason, and they'd cashed seven straight and 12 of 13 before today's ATS setback.
Baltimore (10-7 SU, 6-9-2 ATS) limped to the regular-season finish line without QB Lamar Jackson, out the past month with a knee issue. The Ravens lost three of their last four games SU, but still mustered a wild card as the AFC's No. 6 seed.
"Lamar is expected to play here, but it doesn't feel like he's going to be 100%," The SuperBook's Casey Degnon said as he analyzed this game on the NFL Wild Card Playoff odds board. "Not too much action on the side or total yet, but I think the Bengals will be very popular amongst both teasers and parlays."
The Ravens certainly hope to have Jackson in the lineup this week. In Week 5 at home vs. the Bengals, Jackson and Baltimore notched a 19-17 victory.