Thursday Night Football picks and live discussion: Dolphins at Bengals

We’ve made it to the start of Week 4 in the NFL. The Miami Dophins and the Cincinnati Bengals tangle tonight, with the Bengals sitting as 3.5-point favorites according to DraftKings Sportsbook.

This is an open thread for game chat.

As we do each week, some of the BTB writers have made picks for the game through Tallysight. Below are our picks for the game with a little reasoning behind them.

Dave Halprin: The Dolphins are hot right now and seem to have found their confidence. The Bengals are still shaky along the offensive line which is tough to overcome. Dolphins are the pick.

Brian Martin - The Miami Dolphins may have several players listed as questionable heading into this Thursday Night Football matchup, including starting QB Tua Tagovailoa, but even that’s not enough to sway things in the Cincinnati Bengals favor. Miami has emerged as one of the best teams in the entire league and should have no problem, even if they’re shorthanded, against a Cincinnati team that looks nothing like the Super Bowl contender they were a season ago.

David Howman - I’m still not sold on the Dolphins being as good as their record indicates. They won a fluky game against a banged up Bills team, and now Miami is hurt themselves. Going on the road on a short week against a Bengals team trying to right the ship has me leaning towards Cincinnati on this one.

Matt Holleran - The Dolphins are 3-0, but I’m not sold on them being one of the NFL’s elite teams. Miami comes into this game with tons of injuries, and could be without their starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. The Bengals had a get right game against the Jets last weekend, and I see them carrying that success over to this week. Cincinnati handles a banged up Dolphins team and delivers them their first loss of the season.

RJ Ochoa - This is a prove-it game for both teams. The Miami Dolphins can prove that they really are this good and that they are one of the teams for us to take the most seriously within the AFC as a whole. On the other side the Cincinnati Bengals can prove that their first few weeks were a blip and that they are re-finding their form that was so successful last year. The more likely outcome in my mind is Cincinnati does it. Give me the Bengals.

Tom Ryle - I still have a poor idea of what either of these teams really are. This could be a game that separates a pretender from a contender. I know Tua has been playing well, but I still feel a bit more confident in Burrow. If Tua is not available, I think it is case closed. I think the Bengals are a long way from getting back to the top of the AFC, but they should be able to come out on top in this game.

Tony Catalina - Thursday night features two teams looking to confirm and prove some things. Dolphins looking to confirm they’re as good as their start suggests and the Bengals are looking to prove that their start isn’t indicative of a team that was a flash in the pan last season. Ultimately when it comes to a quick turn around game like this health and talent are huge factors. I think the Bengals have a healthier team and enough weapons to give the Dolphins their first loss of the season.