Date: Sunday, December 5
Time: 1 pm ET
Venue: Paul Brown Stadium
All NFL Betting Lines, Odds, and Prop Bets are available on FanDuel Sportsbook.
Moneyline: Chargers +134 | Bengals -158
Spread: Chargers -3.0
Total: 50.5 Over -110 | Under -110
Odds to win Super Bowl LVI: Chargers +3000 | Bengals +2800
These two teams are basically mirrored images of each other. They both have young quarterbacks who have flashed superstar potential. Both teams have a solid group of skill players, including do-it-all running backs. Both teams have looked great in certain weeks and awful in others.
Some of the advanced metrics tell a similar story. The Chargers rank 18th in Football Outsiders DVOA, the Bengals rank 20th. With that in mind, it’s not surprising that the Bengals are listed as three-point home favorites. Vegas is essentially saying that these two teams are dead-even on a neutral field.
However, one area significantly favors the Bengals: point differential. This season, the Bengals have outscored their opponents by +83 points, while the Chargers have been outscored by -20. That gives the Bengals a Pythagorean Win Expectation of 7.5-3.5, while the Chargers are just 5.0-6.0.
The Bengals also have a clear edge on the defensive side of the ball. The Bengals rank sixth in points per game allowed, while the Chargers rank 29th. The gap isn’t nearly as wide when looking at DVOA, but the Bengals are definitely better defensively.
Finally, Joe Burrow has the edge against Justin Herbert as far as against the spread records go. Burrow has jumped out to a 12-9 ATS record to start his career, while Herbert is just 13-13. I don’t feel all that confident in the Bengals in this spot, but I think they’re the right side.