Sportsfanatic71 ..thanks
Pinnacle..good question ..deserves an answer
The answer to your question is both
I love the game ...and letting my winnings ride
A brief analysis of why I like Cincinnati >>>>
Indianapolis is coming off a huge win last week @ home against Detroit by the score of 37-10 ,
while Cincinnati lost @ Atlanta 19-24
Last time Indianapolis played on the road was week 1 of this preseason where they lost to a Dallas team 10-23
Indi was a 5.5 point underdog in that game .
The Colts play the regular season opener less than week away
on thursday against a dangerous NO Saints squad.
All the attention, preparation, and planning by the Colts is being concentrated on the 2007 NFL season opener .
It is clear not only by Tony Dungy' statements , but also by his actions in the past , that the starters will not see any playing time
on this game .
It means absolutely nothing at any level to the Colts as they prepare to play the Saints on a short week.
Cincinnati has lost all games this preseason and is on a 6 game losing streak counting the last 3 games they dropped at the end of last year to miss the playoffs.
There is a lot more reason for Marvin lewis to play some starters
and give them some confidence going into the first week of the regular season.
There is also the motivational incentive to perform well in front of their fans , and break the losing streak.
The starting offense of the Bengals also needs extra work.
Not the case for the Colts >>>
As the preview @ Covers states :
Two years ago, the Colts played only two starters - both on defense - in the final preseason game in Cincinnati.
Last year, they used only one starter - again, on defense - in their last tuneup game in Indianapolis.
Indianapolis lost last year's week 4 game against Cincinnati
20-3 and that was @ home.
The prior year on week 4 of the preseason , they weren't so fortunate as the Colts lost 38-0 to the Bengals on the road.
Oh and they were getting 5.5 points ...
Indianapolis lost all 5 of their games in preseason last year
only to go on to win the Super Bowl .
This game @ Cincinnati means a great deal more to the Bengals than it does to the Colts.
It means more to the players , it means more to the coaches,
it means more to the fans.
For Cincinnati ...
winning the final week of preseason and winning it big against
the Super bowl champions regardless of who suits up and for how long is that extra motivation needed that makes this an excellent pick !