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By Tyler Everett
Sports Betting Editor
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While the Week 11 Sunday Night Football matchup is (understandably) not getting as much love as Ravens vs. Steelers or Chiefs vs. Bills, the clash between the Bengals and Chargers should not be slept on.
It's going to be possible to sneak into the AFC playoffs as a wild card without a great record, as the 7-seed if the season ended last weekend would be the 5-5 Broncos. Still, another loss for 4-6 Cincinnati tonight would further reduce the Bengals' margin for error.
Meanwhile, the 6-3 Chargers have been flying under the radar, but not for much longer. Both this game and next week's Monday Night Football clash with Baltimore will put Jim Harbaugh's team squarely in the limelight.
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Tonight's Bengals vs. Chargers showdown kicks off at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC/Peacock.
Bengals vs. Chargers Betting Odds
Below are the odds for Bengals vs. Chargers in three markets: the spread, moneyline and total.
BET , GET 0 BONUS BETS
DRAFTKINGS SPORTSBOOK
0 BONUS OR ,000 FIRST BET RESET (MUST USE CODE NEWSWEEK)
ESPN BET
,500 FIRST-BET OFFER
BETMGM
0 BONUS OR ,000 FIRST-BET SAFETY NET
BET365
,000 FIRST BET
CAESARS SPORTSBOOK
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FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK
Bengals vs. Chargers Betting Breakdown
Cincinnati Bengals Betting Preview
The Bengals have been one of the most intriguing and entertaining teams in the league all season.
Joe Burrow has led the Bengals to a 4-3 record over the last seven games after a shocking 0-3 start, and they are just a few plays away from having a very different record/outlook.
What Cincinnati has shown the last few weeks is that for all its flaws, it can hang with anyone in a shootout. The Bengals led Baltimore by 10 points or more in the second half before coming up just short not once, but twice in the last three weeks.
They also lost nailbiters to the Chiefs and Commanders back in September.
Sunday night brings an intriguing challenge for Cincinnati, as the Chargers are one of the few old-school football teams in the league under Harbaugh, offensive coordinator Greg Roman and defensive coordinator Jesse Minter. Through nine games, the Chargers are ninth in the league in total rushing attempts and 31st in passing attempts.
One positive recent development for the Bengals is the return of WR Tee Higgins. Cincinnati is 3-2 with Higgins in the lineup this year, and it scored at least 30 points in three of those games.
At this point, though, the question is not about this offense -- though the expected absence of Orlando Franklin Jr. will make protecting Burrow that much more difficult -- but whether the Cincy D can get enough stops for this team to go on a run.
The Bengals have given up at least 35 points four times this year, including twice in the last three weeks.
Los Angeles Chargers Betting Preview
In many ways, the Chargers have been the opposite of the Bengals, relying on their defense to lead the way. Only one team all year -- the Steelers, back in Week 3 -- has even reached 20 points against the L.A. defense.
This unit has been much better than expected under Minter, who came out to L.A. with Harbaugh from Michigan after leading the Wolverines' outstanding defense in 2022 and 2023.
L.A. stumbled in a loss to the Cardinals on Monday Night Football in Week 7, but that's been this team's only blemish since its Week 5 bye. The Chargers are 4-1 over their last five games, with three straight wins by double-digits.
While the defense has been solid since Week 1, the Chargers have been playing their best offensive football of the season in recent weeks. That includes an impressive showing last week against the Titans' underrated defense. L.A. hung 27 on Tennessee despite throwing for less than 200 yards, as it churned out 145 yards rushing.
One thing to watch for tonight will be whether Herbert continues to use his legs. He picked up 49 yards on the ground against the Saints in Week 8 and added 32 yards and a TD on a season-high nine carries last Sunday in the win over the Titans.
Bengals vs. Chargers Prediction
This is a tough one to predict. The Chargers are playing well, but their six wins aren't nearly as impressive when you take a closer look at the quarterbacks they've beaten.
All six starting QBs that L.A. has taken down -- Gardner Minshew, Bryce Young, Bo Nix, Spencer Rattler, Will Levis and Jameis Winston -- are either unproven or journeymen backups.
Obviously, Burrow, Chase and Higgins will test the L.A. secondary in a way that none of those quarterbacks could.
Bengals vs. Chargers Best Bets
As the line indicates, this game is probably going to be decided by who can make more plays down the stretch.
As tempting it is to take L.A. to stay hot at home, the Bengals -- who have scored 75 total points in their last two games -- should be able to score just enough to finally prevail in yet another close game.
We're also on the under. While the Bengals have the best passing offense that L.A. has seen this year, keep in mind that only one of the Chargers' nine games this year featured a total of 40 points or more, while six (!) of their games have seen 34 points or fewer scored.
While this matchup could easily end up being more high-scoring than the typical Chargers game this year, a shootout still feels unlikely.
- Bengals moneyline (+102 at FanDuel) 0.75 units
- Under 48.5 (-112 at DraftKings) 0.75 units
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