St. Louis Rams vs. Cincinnati Bengals Betting Odds, Analysis, NFL Pick

Cincinnati is encountering some turbulence at the moment, with back-to-back losses, but it remains the best team in the league to bet on so far this season at 8-1-1 against the spread. The Bengals hope to halt that two-game slide when they host St. Louis Sunday afternoon.

Point spread: The Bengals opened as 7.5-point favorites; the total was 42 early in the week, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark. (Line updates and matchup report)

NFL pick, via Odds Shark computer: 23.9-16.6 Bengals

Why the Rams can cover the spread

The Rams have lost three games in a row, but two of those have come by field goals at the buzzer. Three weeks ago they lost a tough one at Minnesota 21-18 in overtime, and last week they lost at Baltimore 16-13 on a three-pointer on the final play of the game.

St. Louis led the Ravens 13-3 through three quarters, allowed Baltimore to tie the score at 13-13 and had a chance to re-take the lead late, but Greg Zuerlein missed a 52-yarder. A few moments later a Case Keenum fumble set the Ravens up for the game-winning kick.

St. Louis is now just 1-4 SU and 1-3-1 ATS on the road this season, after pushing the spread as a three-point dog last week. But that one outright victory came at NFC West-leading Arizona, and the Rams outplayed Green Bay at Lambeau and the Vikings in Minneapolis.

Why the Bengals can cover the spread

The Bengals are coming off a tough 34-31 loss at Arizona last week, but they hung on to cover as four-point dogs. Cincy led the Cardinals at the half 14-7, fell down 28-14 and rallied to tie the game at 31-31, but a late phantom call on the Bengals defense gave Arizona 15 free yards, leading to the game-winning field goal with two seconds left.

On the night Cincinnati outrushed the Cardinals and won both time of possession and the turnover battle. And that's how you cover spreads in the NFL.

Smart pick

The St. Louis quarterback situation is a mess at the moment, while the Bengals defense has held three of its last four opponents to 10 points or less. And Todd Gurley can't do it all. The smart money here sides with Cincy.

Betting trends

The Rams are 4-0-1 ATS in their last five games against the Bengals.

The favored team is 5-0 SU in its last five games in this matchup.

The Bengals are 4-0 SU and ATS in their last four games after consecutive losses.

All point spread and lines data courtesy of Odds Shark, all quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line movement updates and get the free odds tracker app.