Cincinnati Bengals vs. Detroit Lions Preview & Picks

The Cincinnati Bengals will travel to Detroit to take on the Lions in Week Six of the NFL season at 1:00 pm EST on Sunday on FOX. The Bengals come into this game at 3-2 after losing a heartbreaker to the Packers at home on a game-winning OT field goal by Mason Crosby.

The Detroit Lions haven't won a game yet and sit at 0-5. They are coming off of a two-point loss on the road to the Vikings. The Lions have been within 10 points in every loss this season besides one against the Packers.

They will look to turn their luck around behind their home crowd at Ford Field.

Odds

The Bengals are a 3.5 point favorite on the road with odds of -110 at that spread. The Lions, at +3.5, look to cover at the same odds of -110. The moneyline for the game is set at -180 for the Bengals to win and +160 for the Lions to win. The over/under for this matchup is 48.5, with the same odds of -110 to bet the over or the under.

The Bengals are 2-3 against the spread this season, and the Lions are 3-2 in that same five-game stretch. The Lions are, however, 4-1 against the spread in their last five games at home as the underdog. The Under has hit three out of ten times combined for the Bengals' and Lions' games.

Why Should the Bengals Win?

Cincinnati was given some gifts delivered by Mason Crosby, who missed an extra point and three field goals. The Bengals couldn't capitalize and paid the price with a loss. They have done well down the stretch in close games this season, which is a characteristic that has not been found in recent Bengals' teams.

The Bengals need this win because the 2nd half of their schedule will not be easy. The Bengals have been good enough on the offensive end, but their defense has stepped it up and ranks in the top 10 in the NFL in most defensive stats. If the defense plays well, the Bengals will have a good chance of winning this game.

Why Should the Lions Win?

The Bengals could easily be 1-4 if the bounces didn't fall their way, and it took some luck to win some of their games. The Cincinnati defense has been good but not exceptional. They have given up 20 or more points this season in four of their five games, so there are points to be scored by the Lions in this one.

Their offense has not shown much firepower this season because they are in a rebuilding phase. They have only scored more than 17 points one time this season. They will be able to win this game in one way, and that is keeping the score low and executing down the stretch. If the Bengals can score 24 or more, this will be a tough game for the Lions.

Expected Outcome

One way to look at it is that Bengals fans should be happy that the Bengals are 3-2 at this point because those close games could've gone either way. Another way is to see that the Bengals have been able to close out games in the dying moments of the game: a characteristic they haven't had in recent years.

I think the Bengals will pull this one off because the offense has been putting up enough points this year. The Lions' offense will not be able to catch them.