Banner -<a href='http://sports.bodoglife.com/welcome/71576/'>Online Sports Betting</a>at Bodog Sportsbook

Easy Deposits and Great Customer Service at Bodog!

New England Patriots at Oakland Raiders NFL Point Spreads & Predictions

Written by Jimmy Boyd

The 8-5 New England Patriots look to strengthen their playoff chances with a win over the 3-10 Oakland Raiders in Oakland this Sunday. Expect plenty of NFL betting action to be rolling in on the Pats this week as the Raiders are just 1-5 straight up and against the spread at home this season while the Patriots are 4-2 straight up and against the spread on the road. Odds makers have listed the Patriots as a 7-point favorite with the total set at 39.5.

New England’s win over the lowly Seahawks was not pretty last week, but it was a “W” nevertheless, keeping it in the AFC East title hunt. The Pats rallied from an 11-point deficit to pull off the 24-21 win. QB Matt Cassel was plenty good enough in the victory, completing 26 of 44 passes for 268 yards and a score while playing turnover-free football. The running game continued to struggle, however. The Pats ultimately had to ditch it all together when they fell behind in the fourth quarter. LaMont Jordan’s return adds another back to this injury-plagued position but he has a light day at the office with only 18 yards on four totes. Sam Morris gained just 36 yards on 11 carries.

Defensively, the Pats were as bad as I’ve seen them and it has a lot to due with the ridiculous amount of injuries they’ve sustained this season. They let backup QB Seneca Wallace throw for 212 yards on 20 of 28 passing with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Expect to see the Raiders looking to take advantage of New England’s banged up secondary this week. New England was not any better against the run, allowing a lofty 5.2 yards per carry average and 134 total rushing yards for the game. If you think New England can continue to win with its banged up roster and cover the number against lowly Oakland in the process, bet the Patriots at -7 at BetUS.

We have to expect better from the Raiders this week after one of their worst all around games of the season. At least they will have had an extra few days to prepare after playing in last Thursday night’s game. While teams have been able to take advantage of the Patriots pass defense this season, JaMarcus Russell and Andrew Walter have done little to give us much confidence in their ability to throw the football. The two combined for three turnovers and just 129 yards passing against the Chargers. The Raiders did not get anything out of the running game either as they had to abandon it early because they dug themselves such a hole. They need to find way to utilize the offensive talents of playmaking rookie Darren McFadden, who was a non-factor with only one carry.

Defensively, the Raiders will have to do a good job defending the pass because that is how New England has been winning its football games. They limited Phillip Rivers to just 45 percent passing but they gave up big plays. The Raiders gave up just 3.4 yards per carry, with LaDainian Tomlinson getting 91 yards on 25 attempts last week. He had no gain longer than nine yards. New England has struggled running the football all season and the Raiders should not be dominated in the trenches by any means. New England is a methodical team which has not proven to be very explosive at all. If the Raiders can maintain their discipline on the defensive side of the football, they can stay right with the Patriots. If you think Oakland keeps this one close, bet the Raiders at +7 at BetUS.

Jimmy Boyd has beat the NFL odds each of the past two Sundays and he’s ready to go at it again with another dose of his award winning NFL picks.

If you liked this article, you may also be interested in: