Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Cincinnati Bengals Prediction, Preview and Odds - 09/13/2026

Game Time: 1:00 pm ET, Sunday, September 13, 2026

Venue:  Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati, OH

Where to Watch:  FOX

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Buccaneers +3.5, Bengals -3.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Buccaneers +3.5, Bengals -3.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Buccaneers +3.5, Bengals -3.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Tampa Bay Buccaneers:  0-0 (NFC South)

Cincinnati Bengals:  0-0 (AFC North)

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers:  N/A

Cincinnati Bengals:  N/A

The Buccaneers finished last season with an 8-9 record overall and they were 3-3 in their division games too. They had a 4-4 record in their home games and had a 4-5 record in their road games where they will be in this game. Last season, their offense was averaging 22.4 points per game and their defense was allowing an average of 24.2 points per game. Their offense was also averaging 320.4 yards per game and their defense was allowing an average of 337.2 yards per game. Baker Mayfield led the team in passing yards with 3,693, Bucky Irving led the team in rushing yards with 588, and Emeka Egbuka led the team in receiving yards with 938.

The Bengals finished last season with a 6-11 record overall and they were 3-3 in their division games too. They had a 3-6 record in their home games and had a 3-5 record in their road games where they will be in this game. Last season, their offense was averaging 24.4 points per game and their defense was allowing an average of 28.9 points per game. Their offense was also averaging 329.2 yards per game and their defense was allowing an average of 380.9 yards per game. Joe Burrow led the team in passing yards with 1,809, Chase Brown led the team in rushing yards with 1,019, and Ja'Marr Chase led the team in receiving yards with 1,412.

The current betting odds have the Bengals listed as a 3.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Bengals had a bad season going 6-11 overall and were plagued by injuries once again. Joe Burrow missed a lot of time last season, but he is healthy coming into this season and will be looking to rebound with a great year. They still have a ton of talent on offense with one of the best QB and WR in the NFL and they haven't had much trouble putting up points the last few years. Their issue has been defense, giving up a ton of points every season, but the defense has improved this year and the Bengals will come out with their best effort in this home opener as this team is starved for a good start to the season. Meanwhile, the Buccaneers had an 8-9 season last year and they were a bit of a disaster. They were the best team in their division by far the 1st half of the season, but they completely collapsed in the 2nd half, going under .500 and missing the playoffs as the Panthers won the division. Todd Bowles probably should have been fired after the way they ended the season, but he is back for another year and the locker room could be lacking confidence in their own coach. They had some big names leave in the off-season like Mike Evans and there has also been some contract disputes between Baker Mayfield and the front office. The Bucs are definitely not in the best headspace entering the year and the Bengals can take advantage of that as they desperately need a good start to the season. The best way to place a bet here is on the Bengals to cover the spread in this game. 

Buccaneers Bengals Prediction:  Our NFL Pick for Sunday, September 13, 2026 (1:00 pm ET start time) is Bengals 34 Buccaneers 27.

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 4-0 ATS in the first two weeks of the regular season. 7-3 1H ATS as a road underdog. 24-13 UNDER against AFC North division opponents. 36-24 UNDER in all games where the total is greater than or equal to 49.5.

Cincinnati Bengals: 5-8 ATS at home in a home game where the total is greater than or equal to 45.5. 1-4 ATS at home in non-conference games. 21-12 UNDER in all games where the total is greater than or equal to 49.5. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers:  None.

Cincinnati Bengals:  None.

“You don’t put any more pressure than you put on yourself, and you get down to work and you do your job and you make your corrections and you make it better, and that’s all you can do.” - Todd Bowles on his mindset coming into this new NFL season.

"It's waves there. I think that's critical. As a play-caller, the first thing I look at is who we're facing up front. First and foremost. I feel like if that's a deep group that continues to come at you, that makes it challenging to see sometimes beyond the back seven. I feel like we've got that group right now." - Zac Taylor on his team’s defense coming into this new season.

WR McMillan, Jalen

WR Egbuka, Emeka

WR Godwin Jr., Chris

TE Otton, Cade

QB Mayfield, Baker

RB Irving, Bucky

WR Chase, Ja'Marr

WR Higgins, Tee

WR Iosivas, Andrei

TE Sample, Drew

QB Burrow, Joe

RB Brown, Chase

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Coaches:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Todd Bowles (5th season)

Cincinnati Bengals: Zac Taylor (8th season)