Falcons Raiders Odds

An inter-conference matchup between teams from opposite coasts is on the slate this week. The Atlanta Falcons make the long, cross-country trip to face the Oakland Raiders Sunday afternoon. The kickoff for this contest is set for 4:25 pm ET from the O.co Coliseum in Oakland, California. Regional television coverage is provided for the contest by CBS. The current odds show the Raiders as a 4.5 point favorite in the contest with the over/under set at 48 points.

Atlanta opened the season on a down note as they lost 31-24 at home to Tampa Bay in a NFC South tilt last week. The Raiders opened their season with a 35-34 road win over another NFC South team, the Saints, last week. This is the 14th meeting all-time between the two franchises. Oakland has a slim 7-6 advantage in the series. The Falcons won the last three meetings. That includes a 23-20 win at home on October 14, 2012 in the last matchup.

Early Lean on Raiders -4.5

Atlanta couldn’t make enough plays on either side of the ball in their divisional loss to the Buccaneers. The Falcons actually outgained the Buccaneers by three yards but couldn’t tackle a tackling dummy. Atlanta went from up 13-10 with under two minutes to go in the first half to down 31-13 with five minutes to play in the third quarter. The Falcons attempted to rally but after cutting the deficit to seven points with five minutes to play, they had just one more chance. Atlanta took over at their own 9 with 1:44 to play. After a 19 yard pass play from Matt Ryan to Jacob Tamme, the drive stalled. Ryan threw four straight incompletions and the Falcons turned the ball over on downs. Tampa Bay then ran out the clock.

Ryan hit 27 of 39 passes for 334 yards with two touchdown passes. The run game was stifled: Atlanta ran the ball 22 times for 52 yards. The Falcons need to establish a better ground game to set up the pass. Tevin Coleman led the team with eight carries for 22 yards while Devonta Freeman had 11 carries for 20 yards. Jacob Tamme had a team leading six catches for 51 yards. Coleman (95 yards) and free agent pickup Mohamed Sanu (80 yards, TD) each caught five passes. Julio Jones was held to four catches for 66 yards, though he did score a touchdown.

Oakland was in a wild, back and forth shootout that showed the offense is capable. The defense still has some steps to take in order to be a successful unit. The Raiders were gashed to the tune of 507 yards in the game, with 423 coming through the right arm of Saints’ quarterback Drew Brees. Oakland matched the Saints with big plays of their own, including Jalen Richard’s 75 yard touchdown run on his first NFL carry. Trailing by seven in the later stages of the fourth quarter, David Carr led Oakland down the field. With 47 seconds to play, he hit Seth Roberts with a 10 yard touchdown pass. Rather than go for the tie, Jack Del Rio had his team go for two. Carr connected with Michael Crabtree for the winning conversion. Saints rookie kicker missed a 61 yard field goal as time expired.

Carr hit 24 of 38 passes for 319 yards and that score. The run game churned out 167 yards and three scores. Richard led the Raiders with 84 yards and a score while Latavius Murray added 59 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Crabtree led the Raiders with seven catches for 87 yards in the game. Amari Cooper had six receptions for 137 yards. A good kicker is important in close games: Sebastian Janikowski drilled both field goal attempts, including a 47 yard try, and his lone extra point.

The Falcons couldn’t make tackles last week and now get another skill group with size and speed. Oakland’s defense needs to tighten up, especially in the passing game. The Raiders have confidence after their season opening win and that was on the road in a hostile environment. Oakland is at home here. Even though they may not be here after this season, the Raiders still get a decent turnout. Atlanta can’t keep up and falls to 0-2 as they can’t tackle. For more free NFL picks, check here!

Oakland is 4-1 ATS in their last five after picking up at least 350 yards of offense and 6-2 ATS in their last eight after giving up at least 30 points. Atlanta is 1-4 ATS in their last five on grass, 1-5 ATS in their last six on the road and 2-11 ATS in their last 13 overall.

 

 

 

 

Read More Like This