The Browns and Bengals close out Week 8 on Monday Night Football in a battle for Ohio. Sadly, Ja’Marr Chase is out. However, the stud second-year wideout’s absence is the motivation behind the first featured prop. Meanwhile, the Browns are underdogs, and their top wideout should be busy. Finally, a young field-stretching wide receiver has a challenging matchup, making his yardage over an attractive Under to bet.
Browns vs. Bengals Player Props: Week 8
Here are the three Browns vs. Bengals player props I like for Monday Night Football.
Tyler Boyd Over 60.5 Receiving Yards (-110)
Tyler Boyd was slow out of the blocks this season, producing 33 and 17 receiving yards in the first two games. Fortunately, Boyd has cranked it up. Since Week 3, he’s had 105, 47, 32, 66, and 155 receiving yards. The veteran slot has benefited from Cincinnati’s drastic shift to a shotgun-based offense.
In addition, he’s shoved up the pecking order with Chase out. Boyd has been targeted on a rock-solid 19.0% of Joe Burrow’s pass attempts the last two weeks, erupting for 221 yards. Further, according to numberFire, he’s had a stellar 157 Air Yards, the second-most on the Bengals. So, Boyd hasn’t been just a dink-and-dunk option.
Boyd also has a sweet matchup. According to Football Outsiders, the Browns have allowed the 12th-most receiving yards per game (52.9) to No. 2 wide receivers. Finally, Chase had 15 receptions and 262 receiving yards in the last two games. The second-year wideout’s production will likely go somewhere since Cinci is a pass-first offense and inefficient on the ground. Boyd will probably soak up a significant chunk of the vacated production. So, I’m on Boyd’s receiving yardage over.
Where to bet: Tyler Boyd Over 60.5 Receiving Yards | -110 at FanDuel Sportsbook
Amari Cooper Over 52.5 Receiving Yards (-110)
Amari Cooper is a different player at home. I have to tip my cap to Yahoo!’s Dalton Del Don for highlighting Cooper’s crazy home and road splits in his career. According to Pro-Football-Reference, Cooper averages a solid but unspectacular 54.8 receiving yards per game. However, he’s smashed for 75.8 receiving yards per game. It’s not a small sample, either. He’s played 58 road games and 57 home contests in his career.
Cooper’s home excellence has also extended to his first year with the Browns. Cooper has 101, 101, 76, and 44 receiving yards in four home games this year. Thus, he’s gone over his yardage prop for tonight’s game of 52.5 yards in three of four home games.
Sadly, per Football Outsiders, the Bengals are seventh in pass defense Defense-Adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA). Still, they’ve allowed 61.8 receiving yards per game to No. 1 wideouts. Yes, that’s lower than the league average of 69.2 yards. However, a standard performance from the Bengals against No.1 wideouts would be enough for Cooper to hit his over for 52.5 receiving yards.
Where to bet: Amari Cooper Over 52.5 Receiving Yards | -110 at FanDuel Sportsbook
Donovan Peoples-Jones Under 44.5 Receiving Yards (-115)
Jacoby Brissett isn’t the caliber of quarterback to support multiple pass catchers. So, Donovan Peoples-Jones will struggle to get his when Cooper is popping off. That’s played out in volatility at home. In four home games this season, DPJ has zero, 10, 50, and 74 receiving yards. The third-year receiver was also targeted an underwhelming 16 times in four games at home.
However, his brutal matchup excites me the most about betting on his under. The Bengals are the best team in the NFL at defending No. 2 wideouts, allowing a league-low 27.2 receiving yards per game. The Bengals are also outstanding at defending deep passes. According to numberFire, Cinci’s opposing quarterbacks have completed just 20 of 56 passes that traveled at least 15 Air Yards this year. Meanwhile, per Sports Info Solutions, DPJ has an 11.5-yard average depth of target (aDOT) this year and a 14.4-yard aDOT for his career. So, this is a dreadful matchup or DPJ’s role in Cleveland’s offense. As a result, I’m betting on his under for 44.5 receiving yards.
Where to bet: Donovan Peoples-Jones Under 44.5 Receiving Yards | -115 at DraftKings Sportsbook
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