Bengals 2025 NFL Betting: Odds, Predictions, and Breakdown

The Cincinnati Bengals head into the 2025 NFL season as one of the league’s most tantalizing enigmas. They're a team loaded with firepower, but beset by the frustrations of the past two seasons. However, the talk coming out of Paycor Stadium about the AFC's most unpredictable franchise is that a renaissance could be on the cards.

Both star wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and partner-in-crime Tee Higgins have just signed bumper new deals to remain with Cincy next season. Add to that the fact that quarterback Joe Burrow is arguably a top-three QB in the league, as demonstrated by him leading the league in terms of both touchdowns and throwing yards last season, and it's clear to see why online betting sites seem uneasy in writing them out of the Lombardi discussion. Websites offering online betting in Canada currently have the Bengals listed as a +2200 shot at winning the Super Bowl, but what other factors should we be considering?

Best Bonuses

BetAnything

200% Bonus - Reduced Juice

200% Bonus

BetOnline

$250 in Free Bets

$250 Free Bet

Bovada

$750 Bonus - Tons of Betting Options

$750 Bonus

2024 Rewind: Offense Surges, Defense Falters

Let’s start with the facts. The Bengals finished 9-8 last term, a record heavy with drama but light on playoff reward, leaving them perched—tantalizingly—just outside the postseason picture for a second straight year. But it wasn't for the want of trying. Cincy won their last five games on the spin in a bid to gatecrash the playoffs, only to be downed by the Kansas City Chiefs as they started their practice squad in their final game against the Broncos and were duly blown out, allowing Denver to progress at the Bengals' expense.

Cincinnati's offense was nothing short of pyrotechnic. Joe Burrow paced the entire NFL in both passing yards and touchdowns, orchestrating an attack that rewrote franchise records. The former Heisman winner's symbiosis with college teammate Ja’Marr Chase was electric, leading to the wideout claiming the triple crown, a feat witnessed only six previous times in the Super Bowl era.

But precision passing and highlight reel plays couldn’t mask the defensive unraveling. The Bengals were gashed for 30+ points in six games, finishing with the league’s seventh-worst scoring defense. They became specialists in heartbreak: four times, the team tallied 30 or more and still walked away with a loss. If one statistic defined the season, it was this—the cruel juxtaposition of record-setting offense and porous defense. The fallout was decisive: long-tenured defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo exited stage right.

Yet, hope did not die. Cincinnati closed 2024 with a five-game heater—defying odds and serving notice they weren’t ready to fade gently. These final weeks, though ultimately not enough, injected a shot of adrenaline for what’s to come.

Onward to 2025: New Faces, Sharpened Edges

How do you turn talent into titles? Cincinnati spent this offseason answering precisely that question. The front office moved with a surgeon’s precision in free agency and the draft, intent on hardening a defense that had frayed far too many times for anyone's liking last season.

Defensive tackle Tedarrell Slaton and linebacker Oren Burks offer muscle and fresh menace in the trenches, while pass-rush king Trey Hendrickson—nearly unstoppable in 2024—returns to anchor the edge. Cam Taylor-Britt, already with two career pick-sixes, headlines a deepening secondary tasked with flipping close losses into shut-down wins.

The offense retains its dazzling core. Joe Burrow, the magician under center, returns alongside Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, forming one of the league’s most potent trios. Don’t overlook running back Chase Brown, whose 1,350 scrimmage yards last season marked him as the latest in a long line of Bengals backfield playmakers.

Survival in the AFC North

Scan the AFC North standings and you’ll see a gauntlet awaiting any contender. Baltimore—the reigning 12-5 division champ—has the league’s best combination of MVP brilliance in Lamar Jackson, rugged defense, and the powerhouse Derrick Henry on the ground. They are the gold standard, the team Cincinnati must measure itself against.

The Steelers, fueled by defense and now bolstered by veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers, keep reinventing themselves as a playoff mainstay. Their 10-7 finish last year, despite a late collapse, was a lesson in resilience and close-game mastery.

The bookies currently make the Ravens the clear favorites for divisional honors, pricing them as the -150 favorites to claim a third straight crown. Then comes the Bengals at +225, with A-Rod's Steelers at +500 and the punchbag-like Browns way out at +3300.

Overcoming Slow Starts

Here’s a stat to make Bengals fans wince: Cincinnati has lost its opening two games for three straight seasons. These glacial starts don’t just darken September—they ripple through the entire year. Indeed, it was the opening-day defeat to 7.5-point underdogs New England on home turf that ultimately cost Burrow and Co. a spot in the playoffs. As such, hitting the ground running is the only option next season.

The Bengals begin their campaign with a trip to face their rival Cleveland Browns. They are currently a 5.5-point betting favorite to win that clash, and defeat is simply not an option.

Best Bets

Joe Burrow Over 33.5 Passing Touchdowns

Burrow didn’t just surpass this mark last year—he obliterated it, handing out touchdowns like hotcakes behind a revitalized O-line. The former LSU superstar has cleared this number in all three of his injury-free seasons, and it seems that the only thing that will stop this from cashing will be an untimely knock.

Over 9.5 Regular Season Wins

If the defense climbs even to middle-of-the-pack, the Bengals should finally breach double digits. They’ve posted nine wins in back-to-back years: the first of those was without an injured Burrow, the second with one of the worst defenses Paycor has ever seen. Surely they are overdue for that tenth?

To Make the Playoffs

Cincinnati as a dark horse? Count on it. But not just to reach the playoffs at odds of -160. We can see them going all the way to the Big Game in San Francisco next February.

I (AKA CatBurg) have a lifelong passion for sports, especially football and basketball. I enjoy the thrill and excitement of sports betting and everything in between. My teams are (Packers #GoPackGo) and who I am betting on!