Cincinnati Bengals (2-1) at Cleveland Browns (0-3)

NFL Football: Sunday October 4, 2009 1 PM EST

The Line: Cleveland Browns +6

The Battle of Ohio resumes as two teams who truly do not like each other meet in Cleveland as the Browns host the Cincinnati Bengals.

New Browns head coach Eric Mangini has yet to taste victory and his team hasn't really been competitive in their games either. Mangini kept his starting quarterback a surprise until just before game one but it hasn't seemed to confuse opposing defenses as the Browns are simply the worst offense in the NFL coming into this one ranked 32nd. Regardless of who the starter is or was, both Browns QB's, Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson, have thrown three interceptions each. The offense like the team appears to be in total disarray. Things aren't much brighter on the defensive side where the Browns rank 30th overall  in the league. While it's impossible to make the playoffs just a quarter of the way through the season, the Browns are playing themselves out of them quicly and are jsut among the worst teams in the NFL this year.

At the start of the season I called for the Cincinnati Bengals to be the surprise team this season and so far they haven't disappointed. The Bengals are a tipped ball in the final seconds against Denver from being undefeated and have beaten two of the better teams in the past two games including the Packers on the road and the defending Super Bowl Champions at home. Carson Palmer is finally healthy and he seems to be in sync with his receivers which has opened up the runnin game for Cedric Benson, the most surprising player in the NFL this season. The Bengal defense added players in just the right spots and look like a different unti than we have seen in recent years. While they are ranked in the middle of the pack at 16th, this point in the season less than 100 yards can make a big difference and the tip play against Denver is still working against them in this regard.

The Browns are 1-10-1 against the spread in their last 12 games and 0-6 against the spread in their last six as an underdog. The Bengals are 5-1 against the  spread in their last six overall and just 1-5 against the spread in their last six as a favorite. The underdog has covered the last four times in this series.

While the games between these two are usually competitive and hard fought, this one just looks like a mismatch between a team who is looking for answers and a team who has finally found themselves. The Bengals are fulfilling their pre season promise and the Browns are already scouring the college rosters to see who they could take with a top five pick.

Mitch's Pick: Cincinnati Bengals -6

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