A combination of an improved offense on one side of the ball and questions about the quarterback position on the other have the Cincinnati Bengals as a near-touchdown favorite for their season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 11.
After the full schedule was released Thursday night, the lines dropped for Week 1 and the Bengals opened as a 6.5-point favorite against the Steelers, per Tipico Sportsbook.
The Bengals improved their offensive line and look like an AFC contender again while the Steelers had to replace the retired Ben Roethlisberger with former Bears and Bills quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and also drafted Pitt QB Kenny Pickett with the 20th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
The game being in Cincinnati certainly also helped push the line in Cincinnati’s favor. Obviously, there’s still a long way to go before kickoff in about four months, but you get a sense of the early thoughts from the books on the gap between the Bengals and the Steelers heading into the season. The Bengals swept the Steelers in 2021.
