As the NFL begins to turn the page to Week 5, the Detroit Lions (3-1) continue to work their way through AFC North opponents. After taking down the Baltimore Ravens 38-30 on the road and then the Cleveland Browns 34-10 at home, the Lions will now face the Cincinnati Bengals (2-1) in Week 5.
The Bengals have yet to play in Week 4—they’re scheduled to play the Denver Broncos on “Monday Night Football”—but the folks over at FanDuel Sportsbook are ready to make their projections for Week 5, and they’ve set the opening betting line at Lions -8.5 points.
The Bengals opened the season with high hopes, and they looked well on their way after securing a close win over the Browns in Week 1. But Week 2 brought terrible news, as superstar quarterback Joe Burrow injured his toe on a Jaguars sack halfway through the second quarter. The Bengals turned to backup Jake Browning, who would help lead Cincinnati to a win over Jacksonville, but his magic would run out in Week 3, as the Carson Wentz-led Vikings dismantled them 48-10.
Burrow has been diagnosed with a Grade 3 turf toe injury, and has elected to undergo surgery, which means he is expected to miss approximately the next three months of football—though the Bengals have not given an official timeline. He could potentially return in the final month of the season.
While the Bengals were able to pull out the win over the Jaguars, most believe their performance against the Vikings is a more accurate representation of what this team could look like moving forward. Lions fans will get a chance to see if those expectations are accurate by doing some advanced scouting on Monday night, but with the way Detroit is rolling—scoring 124 points in the last three games—it’s not surprising that the Lions are heavy favorites.
So, what do you think? Will Detroit be able to take advantage of a Burrow-less Bengals team? Or will this game be tighter than what’s being projected?
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