The Titans are solid candidate for the Underdog Nobody Wants as this offense-challenged club hosts the high-powered Bengals. Cincy escaped with a win Monday night and will now face a flat spot against a Titans club that has just enough teeth to push this one to the wire.

The only real negative on this Bengals pick is that they are playing on short rest, but that should also serve as an opportunity to keep the momentum going. Tennessee is 0-6 ATS at home, while Cincinnati has been a much better road team (6-1 ATS). Joe Burrow has been playing as well as any NFL QB this season, and the deluge of weapons at his disposal should overcome any difficulties the Titans defense presents. In a game of Burrow vs. Will Levis at a spread this relatively meager, this was an easy choice.

We know the Bengals are a pass-funnel defense to target. While it feels volatile to target Calvin Ridley with Will Levis as his quarterback, the good news is Levis is not afraid to target Ridley on deep passes. Since DeAndre Hopkins was traded to the Chiefs, Ridley has 30% of the team's targets. He has hit this longest reception prop in five of seven games since Hopkins was traded

We tend to overestimate QB comparisons in games, but how can we not be swayed by the Joe Burrow versus Will Levis mismatch? Burrow is the best passer this season by most measures. Levis ranks just above Tommy DeVito. To be fair, Burrow benefits from throwing to peerless WR Ja'Marr Chase. The Bengals are scoring at least in the high 20s regularly, whereas the Titans rarely reach 20 anymore. Burrow tends to heat up in December, when he is 9-3 outright (including January games). As a road favorite, the QB is 12-4 in his career against the spread and unbeaten this season.

The Bengals aren’t mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, which makes for a fun “run the table” narrative. Joe Burrow and this dynamic Cincy offense should outpace the Titans, who are a paltry 2-11 ATS this season. Burrow has dominated subpar opponents historically, going 15-7 ATS against teams below .500 in his career. This Bengals defense has been quite bad, but it showed some signs of life last week. Cincy is playing their second straight road game, but Burrow actually thrives on road trips going 11-4 ATS in this spot.

Last week was another big one for Chase. Just 2 more TDs. Only 15 on the season now. Only 8 TDs in the last 4 weeks. It's hit in 3 of the last 5 games and Titans defense is in bad shape and they are allowing a lot of passing TDs; 17 since Week 5, pretty alarming.

He has 15 of these bad boys. He had two more last week. The Titans have allowed 17 of them since Week 5 (tied for 29th in the NFL). It's clear that Joe Burrow wants his buddy to shove it down the owner's throat and get him a record contract for WRs. The Titans will oblige. And 8 TDs in 4 games will get my attention.

He's throwing for 300 yards here. The Titans passing defense has fallen off (19th in opposing passer rating since Week 5). This game should stay close enough that the Bengals have to keep throwing. Burrow is averaging 285/game, for starters. He has 300+ yards in 4 straight games. I project over 40 attempts and that will get us well over this. I will be playing this at 325+ in alt markets.

Don't mind laying the juice with the Bengals because this offense can score against anyone. Actually, I thought their usually suspect pass defense played well. Expect them to live in the Titans backfield and getting consistent pressure on Will Levis.

The Bengals have their warts, but they are 6-1 ATS on the road, while TEN is 0-5 at home, failing to cover by 6.5 points/game. The Titans have allowed 31.5 PPG since their Week 5 bye and they have major issues defending the pass, allowing 17 passing TDs since then, tied for 3rd most in the NFL. Joe Burrow is leading the NFL in TD passes and Ja'Marr Chase can't be stopped. Burrow is 12-4 ATS as a road favorite, covering in 8 of his last 9 games. Titans are 1-9 ATS outside the AFC South, failing to cover by a TD/G. The Titans couldn't even move the ball on the broken Jags defense. Will Levis is playing out the string there. Bengals still alive.