Bills vs Broncos Odds, Lines, and Spread for Week 15
- The Buffalo Bills are solid 6.0-point favorites at the Denver Broncos on Saturday, December 19th, 2020
- Saturday/Sunday betting record: 9-2; +6.10 units
- See odds, spreads, and lines for this AFC matchup between the Broncos and the Bills below
With a win over the Broncos in Denver on Saturday, the Buffalo Bills can rack up a couple of achievements seldom seen of late by the Bills Mafia.
A victory would be just the second recorded by the Bills in the Mile High City since 1968. As well, the win would clinch Buffalo’s first AFC East title since 1995.
Oddsmakers are down with both of these events occurring. Buffalo is a solid six-point away favorite. The opening line was Buffalo -6.5.
The Bills are 3-1 straight up as the away chalk this season, but just 1-3 in that scenario against the spread.
Bills vs Broncos Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Bills | -275 | -6 (-108) | O 49 (-113) |
| Denver Broncos | +225 | +6 (-113) | U 49 (-108) |
Odds taken Dec. 18th at DraftKings
Kickoff is slated for 4:30 PM EST at Empower Field at Mile High. Game-time temperature is projected to be 39 degrees, with clouds and 2 mph wind.
Broncos Have Ball Security Issues
Tis the season of giving, and no NFL team gives it away like the Broncos. Denver has committed an NFL-worst 29 turnovers. The Broncos own a league-high -18 takeaway rate.
Part of the problem is created by second-year QB Drew Lock. He tends to try to force balls into unwise areas.
Worst turnover differential in NFL:
1. Broncos -18
t2. Bengals -10
t2. Cowboys -10
t2. Eagles -10
t5. Jaguars -7
t5. 49ers -7 pic.twitter.com/FV4IczA7zV— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) December 15, 2020
Lock owns a 13-13 touchdown pass to interception ratio. In last week’s 32-27 win over the Carolina Panthers though, Lock displayed a more disciplined approach.
He was taking what the defense would give him rather than looking to hit for the riskier play. The result was season highs in TD passes (four) and completion percentage (78%, 21-for-27). For the first time in eight games, Lock wasn’t picked off.
Buffalo Diggs This
The only thing in shorter supply in Denver right now than warm weather are cornerbacks. The Broncos are missing five corners.
Four of them – Duke Dawson (torn ACL), Kevin Toliver (torn ACL), Essang Bassey (torn ACL), and Bryce Callahan (foot) – are on IR. AJ Bouye is under suspension. Rookie Michael Ojemudia starts at one corner, while De’Vante Bausby makes his second start of the season at the other.
#Shoutout: Stefon Diggs (1,167) and Cole Beasley (838) have each established new career-highs for receiving yards this season. pic.twitter.com/anlj08rMtN
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) December 14, 2020
This might cause Bills wideout Stefon Diggs to run all the way to the stadium. Diggs leads the NFL with 100 catches. He’s caught 10 balls in three of the last four games.
The connection between Bills QB Josh Allen and Diggs connection could be in for a field day.
Injury Report
Both the Bills (Devin Singletary, Zack Moss) and Broncos like to operate with a change of pace two-running back format. But Denver’s duo is banged up.
Broncos running backs Melvin Gordon (shoulder) and Phillip Lindsay (hip) are both listed as questionable for Saturday’s game. They’ve been limited at practice this week and will likely play, but clearly not at 100%.
Vic Fangio said Melvin Gordon, Graham Glasgow, Phillip Lindsay, Trey Marshall will be listed as questionable for Saturday's game against the Bills.
— Aric DiLalla (@AricDiLalla) December 17, 2020
Denver starting right guard Graham Glasgow (foot) is also questionable. More significantly, kicker Brandon McManus (COVID-19) is out. Taylor Russolino, formerly of the XFL’s St. Louis Battlehawks, is expected to be Denver’s kicker.
The Bills don’t list a single starter on their injury report. Weakside linebacker Matt Milano (pectoral) returned from IR two games ago and saw much more action in last week’s win over Pittsburgh.
Trend Spotting
Buffalo has a spotty record in Denver, and six points are a lot to give a home underdog. However, the Broncos are just 3-3 ATS as a home underdog.
The elevation of Laramie, Wyoming (7,165') where Josh Allen played QB in college, is 1,885 feet higher than Denver, Colorado (5,280') where the Bills play Saturday.
— Sal Capaccio 🏈 (@SalSports) December 17, 2020
Buffalo’s #4 passing attack (278.1 yards per game) should light up Denver’s injury-riddled secondary. The Bills are 5-0 ATS in their past five games and 8-2 ATS in their last 10 against Denver.
Best Bet: Buffalo Bills -6 (-108), 1 unit
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
