Tag: nfl predictions

Bucs Wire staff picks for Week 15 against the Packers

See how out staff thinks the latest edition of the Battle of the Bays will play out:

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Green Bay Packers have history. And on Sunday, a new chapter of their rivalry will be written at one of football’s holiest sites.

The Bucs are set to face off against the Packers at Lambeau Field on Sunday in Week 15 in what is set to be a crucial matchup for the both of them — both teams are 6-7 and looking to make a last-second push, with the Bucs hoping to retain their (incredibly) slim division lead and the Packers vying to improve enough to land a wild card spot. It’ll be a tough game, but it won’t be impossible for the Bucs to overcome.

Our staff gives our picks for every Bucs game, and you can see how we saw this one going with our choices below:

Final score predictions for Texans vs. Bengals in Week 10

A final prediction for Texans vs. Bengals in Week 10.

Like the games before it, the Cincinnati Bengals winning a fifth straight will mostly hinge on quarterback Joe Burrow.

That fifth straight looks like it will have to come during a trap game against a game Houston Texans team led by breakout rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, who enters Paycor Stadium having thrown for 470 yards and five touchdowns during a win the week prior.

And while Burrow looks all the way back from his calf injury, he’ll need to carry an offense that won’t have Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase’s playing status will come down to a morning workout.

Still, it’s understandable if Bengals fans feel pretty confident in Burrow anyway. They’ve seen him dice up defenses with the likes of Trenton Irwin in the past. And just last week during that primetime win over the Bills, he peppered eight different targets with at least one catch on his way to 348 yards and two touchdowns. He’s now thrown five scores and no picks over the last two games, wins over the 49ers and Bills.

This can go a step further, too. The Texans rank 24th in passing yards allowed per game and the team’s secondary was a big part of an injury report this week that listed a stunning 23 players. On the final report, eight players were listed as out (including a starting kicker), with a corner and pass-rusher listed as questionable, too.

Of the players listed out for the Texans, top running back Dameon Pierce and top wideout Nico Collins will miss the game, leaving Stroud without key weapons on the road against a Lou Anarumo defense that should throw confusing looks at the rookie.

Which isn’t to say the Texans can’t produce — someone like Dalton Schultz is the blueprint to exploit the usual Bengals struggles against tight ends. But if the Bengals offense jumps out in front and Stroud’s offense has to get predictable to keep pace, it could create problems for the visitors.

Considering the Texans needed nearly 500 yards and five scores from Stroud to beat a 3-5 Tampa Bay team that has lost four in a row, it’s safe to say this is an easier matchup for the Bengals than each of the last two weeks.

That doesn’t mean it isn’t a trap game and the team can’t afford to overlook the Texans while eyeballing next Thursday’s showdown with the Ravens. But it’s super winnable if they keep playing as they have over this four-game streak.

Prediction: Bengals 30, Texans 20

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Bengals news: Big injury updates, toughest games left, NFL Week 10 picks

The latest Bengals news items and notes to know.

Cincinnati Bengals news fired off at a rapid pace this week, mostly around injury updates for names like Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and even Sam Hubbard.

As it turns out, Higgins and Hubbard are two of the biggest names set to miss the game against the Houston Texans, while Chase is a 50-50 shot after making nice progress from his back injury.

But that’s hardly all as the weekend arrives. We’ve also got a ranking of the toughest games left on the schedule for the Bengals and how some experts are picking the Week 10 game.

Here’s a look at the must-know Bengals news, notes and quotes for November 11.

Bengals’ 9 remaining games, ranked from easiest to toughest

The easiest to toughest games left on the schedule for the Bengals, ranked.

It is commonly suggested that the Cincinnati Bengals have one of the NFL’s hardest remaining schedules with nine games left in the season.

And while that’s true, some games are much harder than others.

Across the remaining nine games, the Bengals play four AFC North opponents and just one non-conference opponent outright. They appear on primetime at least two more times, though two games remain TBD on details and flex scheduling could move others.

Either way, at the season’s halfway point, now is a good time to step back and look at the broader schedule and rank Cincinnati’s remaining games from easiest to hardest.

Final score predictions for Bills vs. Bengals in Week 9

A final prediction for Bills vs. Bengals in Week 9.

The three-game winning streak for the Cincinnati Bengals wasn’t the hardest to predict so far because of one factor.

Joe Burrow.

And it sure feels like a fourth straight is on the docket.

When the Bengals host the Buffalo Bills on the Week 9 edition of “Sunday Night Football,” a national audience will again see a fully healthy Burrow.

Last week, he went into San Francisco and beat a five-win 49ers team 31-17 while going 28-of-32 for 283 yards with three scores and some play-extending and first-down runs, too. That, while leaving roughly 10 points on the board because of a missed field goal and a redzone lost fumble.

Of course, nothing is guaranteed in the NFL and other such typical disclaimers. But that was the closest to the offseason vision we’ve seen the Bengals offense so far — where a healthy Burrow plays behind the best line he’s enjoyed since being drafted and the offense continues to expand.

Another disclaimer, though — the Bills aren’t a slouch. Josh Allen is still massively boom-or-bust, having thrown 17 scores and rushed for five more, yet also sitting on eight interceptions and three fumbles. Even while playing through an injury to his shoulder last week, he managed to throw for two scores, 324 yards and rush for a score in a win.

The Bills also have two guys averaging 4.8 yards per rush or better, one of those being Allen, while the Cincinnati defense is one of the league’s worst — at least statistically — against the run.

Still, it’s hard not to keep coming back to the quarterback comparison. Burrow and Co. have turned the ball over just six times this year for a plus-seven differential, second-best in the league.

And while Allen deals with a shoulder injury that still had him on the injury report last week, he’ll also have to deal with Trey Hendrickson’s pass-rush behind a line that is very young on one side.

We’d be remiss not to mention last year, too. The Bengals fired out of the gates and looked well on the way to a win during the regular season before that game got called off. In the playoffs in Buffalo, that really came to fruition, a 27-10 Bengals win in which Burrow threw for two scores, the offense ran for 172 yards and a score and Allen mustered no touchdown passes on 42 attempts.

The Bengals have simply felt like a bad matchup for the Bills for a few years now, especially with the way Lou Anarumo can put out defenses that give Allen problems. Add on his injury and the fact the Bills are 2-2 over their last four, the wins coming against teams with losing records, and it feels like the Bengals are catching them at a good time — at home, no less.

For this one, it wouldn’t be too much of a shock to see the Bengals pounce on another early lead and really turn the running game loose.

Prediction: Bengals 30, Bills 21

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Final score predictions for Bengals vs. 49ers in Week 8

A final prediction for Bengals vs. 49ers in Week 8.

The biggest reason we predicted a two-game winning streak before the bye for the Cincinnati Bengals was the ever-increasing health of quarterback Joe Burrow.

Entering Week 8 against the San Francisco 49ers after the break, there’s no reason to think Burrow isn’t at the healthiest he’s been all year.

Over his last two games, Burrow displayed more mobility than he had been able to all season, ultimately throwing for five touchdowns and two interceptions combined in the wins. Fast forward to this week, the team has gone as far as adding under-center looks to the offense, a sign he’s comfortable with longer dropbacks.

And the positives for the Bengals don’t stop there.

That bye week allowed other injured players such as Tee Higgins, Orlando Brown Jr. and Chidobe Awuzie to get right.

And the opponent is a 49ers team that has gone from Super Bowl favorite to losers of two in a row. Quarterback Brock Purdy had been in concussion protocol from Wednesday to Saturday, star wideout Deebo Samuel is out with an injury and star offensive tackle Trent Williams is merely questionable for the game.

That doesn’t mean the 49ers aren’t dangerous, especially at home, of course. Purdy takes good care of the football with 11 touchdowns and just three interceptions. Christian McCaffrey averages 4.8 yards per carry and has scored eight times as a runner already. Brandon Aiyuk is quietly having a stellar season with 10 catches of 20-plus yards while averaging 17 yards per catch and tight end George Kittle is one of the best in the game. Everyone knows Nick Bosa provides a serious pass-rush, too.

But it’s hard to ignore the trends here with one team much healthier and on more rest. Keep in mind while the Bengals were on a bye, the 49ers were playing a game late into Monday night and had a short week — and that difference matters on the field.

The biggest x-factor might just be whether Williams plays. Without him, Purdy threw one score and two picks and McCaffrey ran for 45 yards on a 3.0 average in the Monday night loss, with the offense completely falling apart.

In a straight-up matchup of quarterbacks, there’s an obvious winner here. But the Bengals might just be favored in this game if both teams are fully healthy as it is. The 49ers will miss at least one of the best players in the NFL, if not two though, just as the Bengals are starting to figure out the offensive side of things, giving off vibes to that team that won 10 straight last year. This is a get-right game as the Bengals get back over .500.

Prediction: Bengals 27, 49ers 20

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Final score predictions for Seahawks vs. Bengals in Week 6

A final prediction for Seahawks vs. Bengals in Week 6.

A week ago, we predicted the Cincinnati Bengals would overcome the Arizona Cardinals and save the season in large part based on practice footage that revealed quarterback Joe Burrow was more mobile than he’d been all season.

Now it’s time to do it again.

The Burrow comeback has only taken it up a notch over the last week while the team prepared to take on the Seattle Seahawks.

Early-week practice footage showed Burrow doing off-platform throws for the first time. And a report on Saturday said he did sprints in practice for the first time all season.

Normally, it might be a little ridiculous to base an entire game’s prediction around one player. But onlookers saw it last week in the blowout win over Arizona, as Ja’Marr Chase alone benefited to the tune of a franchise-record 15 catches for 192 yards and three touchdowns. This week, Tee Higgins will be back on the field, too.

To be totally fair to the Seahawks, they’re a much better team than the Cardinals. The defense can generate a wicked pass-rush and has an 11-sack game on the resume already. The offense has some weapons that could give the Bengals problems, highlighted by wideout DK Metcalf and running back Kenneth Walker III (five touchdowns on a 4.4 average). Quarterback Geno Smith was the comeback player of the year last year and has five touchdowns and one interception.

Still, the Seahawks are a little all over the place, too. Two of the three wins came against teams with a combined one win. The other required overtime. The lone loss was a blowout at the hands of the Rams, a team the Bengals already beat.

The Bengals do have some concerns on the defensive side of the ball, as the trend of sloppy tackling continued last week, requiring a heavy reliance on almost lucky turnovers against a backup quarterback. But it’s hard to imagine Lou Anarumo’s defense keeps struggling with the same thing as a new-look secondary continues to get used to playing as a unit and there are rumblings of change, such as rookie Jordan Battle getting more snaps.

There is an angle where the Seahawks just try to run the ball endlessly and control this game. But they’re on the road after a big trip, too and over the last few years, run-first teams haven’t fared well against a healthy Burrow.

And that’s all it really comes down to. If the gameplan calls for some moving pockets and ways to avoid pressure and Burrow can extend a few plays and drives like he usually does, this should be a win. Feel free to tack on a sense of urgency, as the team doesn’t need it explained how important it is to hit 3-3 for the bye before showdowns with San Francisco and Buffalo.

Prediction: Bengals 30, Seahawks 27

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Bengals news: Joe Burrow injury update, NFL Week 6 picks and more

The latest Bengals news items and notes to know.

Another NFL game day means massive headlines around the Cincinnati Bengals.

And it doesn’t get much bigger than a Joe Burrow injury update.

Said update is nothing but good news for the team and fans. And before kickoff against the Seattle Seahawks, other headline items include Ja’Marr Chase’s usage, causes for concern against those Seahawks and more.

Of course, there’s also the all-important NFL picks angle, where experts project whether the Bengals will get back to 3-3 or not just before the bye week.

Before that game actually kicks off, here’s a look at the must-know Bengals news, notes and quotes for October 15.

Fantasy football and NFL predictions for 2023

The Huddle’s staff predicts various NFL award winners and more.

The NFL and fantasy football seasons are upon us, so it’s time to look into our crystal ball and see what we can forecast. Whether it be NFL MVP, the Super Bowl winner, or fantasy football Rookie of the Year, our team of professional prognosticators make their predictions for the upcoming season.

Let’s see if we can form any kind of consensus among our staff, and even if we cannot, it is always fun to have a snapshot of differing opinions.

2023 fantasy football and NFL staff predictions

What experts predict for the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 2023 season

What will the Jaguars’ record be at the end of the regular season?

The Jacksonville Jaguars believe they’ve built a sustainable winner.

There’s 23-year-old quarterback Trevor Lawrence who looks to already be among the best passers in the NFL. There’s a bevy of talented skill position players like Calvin Ridley, Christian Kirk, Travis Etienne Jr., and Evan Engram. There’s former Super Bowl-winning head coach Doug Pederson on the sideline.

After winning the AFC South a year ago, the Jaguars are eying a step forward in the 2023 season. But is national media sold on the Jaguars? Largely, yes.

Here’s a sampling of what writers predict from the Jaguars in 2023: