Ravens vs. Bengals best bets, preview: Why Ja'Marr Chase is in for huge day, Zay Flowers could be limited

The Ravens have already turned around their season. On Thanksgiving, Joe Burrow hopes to do the same for the Bengals. Burrow returns from a turf toe injury suffered in Week 2 as the Bengals visit Baltimore as the finale of a Thanksgiving triple-header.

The Bengals, who started 2-0, have fallen to 3-8 on the season, with Jake Browning and Joe Flacco both earning starts in Burrow's stead. Though a late-season rally seems unlikely, the Bengals do have the good fortune of playing in a down AFC North, where the Ravens and the Steelers are tied atop the standings at just 6-5. Even with Burrow back and Ja'Marr Chase returning from a one-game suspension, the Cincinnati offense won't be whole, as Tee Higgins (concussion). On the other side of the ball, ace pass rusher Trey Hendrickson (hip/pelvis) is out as well.

Baltimore has won five straight since a 1-5 start, and though the last four wins have come with Lamar Jackson back from a hamstring injury, the Ravens' offense is yet to take full flight. Jackson has been a reticent runner, and the Ravens are just 18th in yards per game over the past four weeks. Perhaps a matchup with a struggling Bengals defense is just what they need.

Ravens vs. Bengals prediction: Can Joe Burrow save Cincinnati on Thanksgiving?

Cody Benjamin

Here are five bets to consider.

Ravens best bets

(All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook)

Mark Andrews any time touchdown (+100) OR first touchdown scorer (+700)

This season, the Bengals have allowed 76 receptions for 962 yards and 13 touchdowns to opposing tight ends. The 76 catches are tied for most in the NFL, but it's the latter two categories that prove Cincinnati's ineptitude defending the position: No other team has allowed more than 799 yards or seven touchdowns to tight ends.

That makes Andrews a strong candidate to find the end zone, if he wasn't one already. He has six touchdowns this season, including four in his last four games. Not only is he a receiving threat, but he has moonlighted as a short-yardage runner; that included a 35-yard touchdown run in Week 11.

Hunter Henry just torched the Bengals for seven catches, 115 yards and a touchdown. If you're willing to get a bit more adventurous, tight ends have scored the first touchdown of the game against Cincinnati four times this season, making first touchdown scorer at +700 intriguing.

Derrick Henry 100+ rushing yards (+128)

Getting Henry to hit triple digits at plus money should be a good bit of business. Though it's been a down year for him overall, Henry has gone over the century mark in three of his last six games, and now he gets a Bengals defense that is allowing 156 rushing yards per game. The Bengals have been putrid tackling (116 missed tackles, tied for most in the NFL), and on a short week against one of the league's most physical backs, don't expect that to change.

Zay Flowers under 5.5 receptions AND under 65.5 receving yards (-101)

There's a lot of things wrong with the Bengals' defense, but DJ Turner II isn't one of them. Only one player has more than two catches in a game with Turner as the primary defender this season. Only one player has had 50 yards in a game with Turner as the primary defender this year. Turner will likely guard Flowers, and Jackson will likely look elsewhere.

Bengals best bets

Ja'Marr Chase over 110 receiving yards (+162)

Last season, Chase recorded 457 receiving yards and five touchdowns against the Ravens, the 457 receiving yards a single-season record against a single opponent. In eight career games, Chase has 58 receptions for 962 receiving yards and eight touchdowns, and with Higgins sidelined, Chase should be in line for another busy day. The Ravens' defense has been much improved as of late, but Chase in particular represents an entire different challenge, as his history against Baltimore shows.

Bengals to win AND under 51.5 points (+700)

The price here is too good to pass up. The under is 14-10 this year on Thursdays, and Baltimore's red zone offense has been a mess, which also lends itself to the under hitting. The Bengals offense could get off to a slow start as Burrow makes his first appearance since Week 2, but it should pick up thereafter. Cincinnati has its back against the wall. Baltimore has been winning recently but has been sluggish. Maybe this is the week it catches up to them.