Week 3 kicked off on Thursday, but we continue that action into Sunday. In the early slot, we have the 2-0 Cincinnati Bengals heading into Minnesota to face the 1-1 Vikings. US Bank Stadium is going to be popping, but it won’t be with doing so with an QB1s on hand.
The Cincinnati Bengals limp into Week 3 at 2-0. While they are riding high off of a pair of victories over the Browns and Jaguars, they now have the problem of missing their quarterback. Joe Burrow went down with grade 3 turf toe and is looking at weeks away from the field. Will they be able to overcome the massive hole in their backfield?
The good news for Bengals fans is that the Vikings are in a very similar situation. After falling to the Falcons in Week 2, they got the news that their quarterback JJ McCarthy would also be out for the foreseeable future. A high-ankle sprain on his right side should see him on the sideline for 2-4 weeks. Their offense sputtered without him and will need some big adjustments here against the Bengals.
College Football Week 4 Best Bets: Upset Parlay
Cincinnati Bengals at Minnesota Vikings Preview and Predictions
Chase Brown Over 70.5 Rushing Yards (-110)
With the quarterback situation where it is at, we have to be in on the rushing game for our Bengals and Vikings predictions. Chase Brown has not yet been over 70.5 rushing yards on the year, but if there is a time to break that trend, it’s here. He did in two of his last three games last year. Plus, there is the Vikings defense of it all. The Minnesota defensive line allowed 143 rushing yards to Bijan Robinson last week on 22 attempts. That comes out to 6.5 yards per rush. If Brown gets his usual set of carries, he might need half of that number to get to the over. Bank on it here as one of my favorite NFL Week 3 picks.
Cincinnati Bengals +3 (-110)
The Bengals being posted as an underdog here seems like a bit of a slap in the face to what their squad has done over the first two weeks. While Joe Burrow is huge piece of this offense, they still snagged a pair of passing touchdowns with Jake Browning under center. Browning seems to have a good rapport with Ja’Marr Chase and should be able to keep the offense doing work.
The Vikings on the other hand looked like fish out of water even with McCarthy in the game. They managed just six points last game and didn’t get a touchdown. Their offense turned the ball over four times. Carson Wentz might actually be a step up, but I don’t think he’s enough to get them ahead in this one. I like the Bengals with the points and possibly even straight up.
