Raiders Now 2-Point Underdogs vs Broncos After Antonio Brown Suspension

• The Oakland Raiders are expected to issue a suspension to wide receiver Antonio Brown
• Brown and Raiders GM Mike Mayock clashed over fines the team issued to the volatile WR
• The point spread in Monday’s Denver vs. Oakland game has moved from Oakland -3 to Denver -2 since it first opened

It appears that Antonio Brown is going to begin his Oakland Raiders career the same place where his Pittsburgh Steelers career concluded – on the sidelines, under suspension by his own team.

The Raiders are expected to suspend Brown for their season opener on Monday (Sep. 9th) against the Denver Broncos. He got into a heated confrontation with Oakland GM Mike Mayock over fines the team had issued Brown for missing training camp workouts.

There’s already been significant movement in the Broncos vs Raiders odds. Oakland opened as a three-point favorite. It moved to Broncos -1 earlier this week, and has now jumped to Denver -2 since the the incident between Mayock and Brown occurred.

Denver Broncos vs Oakland Raiders Odds

*Odds taken 9/05/19.

Announcing a suspension to Brown is likely to cause even more of a shift toward Denver.

Last season, the Steelers suspended Brown for their season finale against the Cincinnati Bengals. Brown got into an argument with Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. He later skipped a day of practice leading up to the game.

Silver and Black, but No Brown

According to published reports, Brown and Mayock got into a heated dispute over $53,950 in fines the Raiders had issued to Brown due to the days he skipped during training camp in protest of not being able to wear his old helmet. The helmet was banned by the NFL for safety reasons.

More on #Raiders WR Antonio Brown and Mike Mayock yesterday: It did not get physical, sources say. But after a screaming match, Brown told Mayock that he would hit him in the face and then punted the ball… and said, Fine me for that. 💸💸💸

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 5, 2019

Reports were that teammates were holding Brown back as he was threatening to punch the GM. He then punted a football and told Mayock to fine him for that.

Antonio Brown posts his displeasure with fines from #Raiders pic.twitter.com/0OMhdwFu7K

— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) September 4, 2019

Brown later posted on his Instagram account about Mayock fining him, which wasn’t a wise decision. He added comments critical of the team to the post.

GM Mike Mayock issued a brief statement today regarding WR Antonio Brown: https://t.co/KlPSPv9Kzw pic.twitter.com/JKHskpmVjN

— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) September 5, 2019

Making a brief public statement, Mayock advised that Brown wouldn’t be practicing on Thursday. He gave no indication whether further disciplinary action would be taken.

Broncos Are Already A Good Bet Over Raiders

The Broncos are 17-3 straight up in their last 20 September games.

Adding solid game manager Joe Flacco at quarterback to an offense already featuring running back Phillip Lindsay and receiver Emmanuel Sanders improves Denver’s forecast. In addition, Denver’s defense is much better than the 22nd-overall rank of a year ago.

5️⃣ days until @JoeFlacco's regular-season debut in orange & blue.#BeatTheRaiders | #NFL100 pic.twitter.com/WyCjNRbArc

— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) September 4, 2019

Oakland quarterback Derek Carr ended up being sacked 52 times last season. Expect Denver’s Von Miller and Bradley Chubb to be camping out in the Raiders backfield.

The Raiders were 26th in total defense last season, surrendering 381.4 yards per game. They were dead last in scoring defense, allowing a league-high 29.2 points per game. They also allowed an NFL-worst 6.3 yards per play.

Brown or no Brown, betting the Broncos is the best play.

Pick: Denver Broncos -2 (-115)