Bills, Bengals playoff odds indicate both teams on outside looking in
It's not the way most thought the NFL season would go for Buffalo and Cincinnati, but regardless, both franchises are still in the playoff hunt.
Entering the year, the Chiefs were +600 to win the Super Bowl, followed by the Eagles at +800 at FanDuel Sportsbook.
Right behind them? The Bills at +900 and the Bengals at +1000.
However, fast-forward three months, and Buffalo has the seventh-shortest odds (+1800), and Cincy has the 22nd-shortest odds (+21000) to win it all.
Furthermore, Buffalo is -145 to miss the playoffs and Cincinnati is -350 at DraftKings Sportsbook — meaning as of today, both are expected to be at home for good in a few weeks.
Now, most of Cincy's struggles are due to the fact that star quarterback Joe Burrow entered the season hampered by a hamstring injury and hasn't played since Week 11 after suffering a season-ending wrist injury.
But, shockingly, there is still a way in for both preseason AFC favorites — although it's an uphill climb.
Six AFC teams currently sit at 7-6: the Steelers, Colts, Texans, Broncos, Bengals and Bills. Just ahead of them are three 8-5 squads: the Chiefs, Jaguars and Browns.
Unfortunately for Buffalo, all five of those 7-6 teams hold the tiebreaker over it.
And while Cincy holds the tiebreaker over Buffalo, the four other 7-6 teams hold the tiebreaker over the Bengals.
In short, neither team controls its own postseason destiny, hence the odds.
Further complicating matters for Buffalo is the fact that only one of its four remaining games is against an AFC team ahead of it in the standings: a Week 18 tilt at Miami.
The Bills host the 10-3 Cowboys this upcoming week. Buffalo is currently a 2-point favorite.
The Bengals, on the other hand, will face Pittsburgh in Week 16, Kansas City in Week 17 and Cleveland in Week 18 — three teams ahead of them in the standings.
In Week 15, Cincy will host the Vikings. The Bengals are 3.5-point favorites.
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On Monday's episode of "The Herd," Colin Cowherd lauded Buffalo QB Josh Allen for carrying the Bills past the Chiefs in Week 14 and keeping the Bills in postseason contention.
However, he feels that at this point, the pressure on Allen to perform at his best, week in and week out, is becoming unfair.
"Do I feel better about the Buffalo Bills today? Not really. … But Josh Allen is so gifted. He's like [Ben Roethlisberger-plus]. … Buffalo is completely, utterly reliant on one player. He is Atlas, holding the world of the Bills above his shoulders. There is no team in this league that is as dependent on a singular player as Buffalo is on Josh Allen. … Josh Allen is gonna be fine for the next three or four years, but you do wonder how this thing ages.
" … I love watching Buffalo. I worry they're just wasting Josh Allen's best years."
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