Broncos vs Raiders Preview, Odds & Picks – Denver Has Lost Last 3 in Oakland
- The Denver Broncos take on the Oakland Raiders in the second of two Monday Night Football matches on the Week 1 schedule
- Get the odds, team trends, betting info, and our expert picks for the game
- Can the Broncos overcome their recent struggles in Oakland?
The Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders cap off Week 1 when the two meet at the Oakland Coliseum – or RingCentral Coliseum, if you will – Monday night (September 9) at 10:20pm ET.
With all the Antonio Brown drama the Raiders have been dealing with, the line for this game has seen a ton of movement. After opening at Oakland -2, it got as far as Denver -2.5 (a 4.5-point swing) when it was announced Brown would likely be suspended.
It went back to Denver -2 when it sounded like he was playing, but after his outright release, it has now gone to Denver -3 at some sportsbooks.
Broncos vs Raiders Moneyline, Spread & Total
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | -2.5 (-120) | -155 | O 42.5 (-113) |
| Oakland Raiders | +2.5 (+100) | +135 | U 42.5 (-107) |
*All odds taken September 9
To see a further breakdown of the game, check out our Broncos vs Raiders full odds & stats.
Books have reported this as their most lopsided game of the week in terms of money breakdown, as 90% of the total money bet against the spread on this game is on the Broncos, and 73% of the bet count is also on the road team.
The worst part for books is that 94.8% of the money on Denver comes from their well-respected, or sharper, players, making the Raiders their biggest need of the week.
Past Results
With Peyton Manning under center in Denver, the Broncos went a perfect 7-0 against the Raiders from 2012-2015 – Manning missed their second meeting of 2015 with an injury.
But since the start of 2016, the two have split their six meetings. It’s been the home side winning each contest, though. Here’s a look at the last three played in Oakland.
- Nov 6, 2016: Oakland 30 – Denver 20
- Nov 26, 2017: Oakland 21 – Denver 14
- Dec 24, 2018: Oakland 27 – Denver 14
The Raiders average margin of victory in those three games was 10 points.
The spread in each was less than four points, and the only time Denver was favored was the most recent one in 2018, as they weer laying 2.5 points on the road. This means Oakland is not only 3-0 straight up, but also against the spread in those meetings.
What You Need to Know About the Broncos
The quick hitters you need to know about the 2019 Denver Broncos before betting the game include:
- They have a new head coach in Vic Fangio, the Bears defensive coordinator in 2018
- Joe Flacco is now their quarterback
- Rich Scangarello, who was the 49ers quarterbacks coach the last two years, is now their offensive coordinator
The Broncos roster and schemes on both sides of the ball will look very different from what we saw in 2018. On top of the big changes listed above, Denver also added Kareem Jackson and Bryce Callahan to help out in their secondary, while signing Ja’Wuan James to finally hold down the right tackle spot.
Two days 'til the sack ?'s back wreaking havoc.#BeatTheRaiders | @VonMiller pic.twitter.com/Qt8aniUarQ
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) September 7, 2019
Fangio hopes to unleash the full potential of edge rushers Von Miller and Bradley Chubb, while Scarangello – a member of the Mike Shanahan offensive tree – will return the Broncos offense to more of a west coast scheme.
What You Need to Know About the Raiders
The quick hitters you need to know about the 2019 Oakland Raiders before betting the game include:
- Antonio Brown was released
- Kelechi Osemele and Jared Cook are no longer with the team
- Newly acquired Tyrell Williams projects to be their no. 1 receiver
The Raiders return the trio of Jon Gruden (head coach), Greg Olson (offensive coordinator), and Paul Guenther (defensive coordinator), but the players taking the field have certainly changed.
Antonio Brown sought advice from social media consultants on how he could accelerate his release from the Raiders, accoring to @mortreport. pic.twitter.com/lXBQmxOB4Z
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) September 8, 2019
Looking to their 2018 Week 1 depth chart, the only returning starters are: Derek Carr, Rodney Hudson, and Kolton Miller (shifting from guard to tackle). On the defensive side, the only returning starters are Karl Joseph and Gareon Conley.
Pick
With the total not really moving between a half and full point with the loss of Antonio Brown from the game, I’m all over the under. This matchup has seen the under hit in seven of the last eight.
The total went under in Broncos games 12 times last season, an NFL-high. And as I pointed out in my Broncos vs Raiders prop bets, there are a lot of new pieces in this Oakland offense, along with a lot of wasted time with Antonio Brown. It’s going to take them some time to all get on the same page.
In spite of their recent struggles in Oakland, I also like Denver to cover the 2.5-point spread. Flacco will show just enough to get Denver up early and Fangio’s defense will punish Carr as they force him into passing situations.
After working in TV, Matt turned his focus towards numbers, specifically odds. He has been with us since 2016 and serves as SBD's Editor-in-Chief, credited with creating our futures trackers, SBD's score predictor, SBD Sharp, and his own model for calculating NFL SOS, among other products.
