Deposit Instantly Using Your Credit Card at Sportsbook.com!

Baltimore Ravens at Dallas Cowboys NFL Odds & Predictions

Written by Jimmy Boyd

ravens-cowboys

A pair of 9-5 teams sitting in second place in their respective divisions meet Saturday night in the Lone Star State when the Ravens meet the Cowboys in one of Week 16’s biggest matchups. These teams enter this week’s matchup on two entirely different planes. The Cowboys are coming off their biggest win of the season by defeating division rival New York on Sunday Night Football while the Ravens are coming off their toughest defeat, a 13-9 loss to AFC North rival Pittsburgh. Odds makers are siding with the team riding high this week, making the Dallas Cowboys early 5-point favorites with the total set at 39.

The Ravens have been one of the NFL’s biggest surprises this season and I’m going to toot my own horn here a little bit because I predicted the turnaround in my preseason preview. The surprise turnaround has also driven the NFL betting value of the Ravens way up. Baltimore enters this week’s contest having covered the number in 10 of 14 games this season, leaving backers quite happy. Prior to last week’s loss, the Ravens were riding a three-game winning streak straight up and against the number. Baltimore’s big turnaround can be attributed to a revitalized defense and the surprise play of rookie QB Joe Flacco.

The Ravens defense has been brilliant all season long, limiting opponents to only 15.2 ppg and 257 total yards per contest. It’s been nothing doing for teams trying to run the football as the Ravens are holding opposing ground attacks to only 78 rushing yards per game. This team has been exceptional against the pass as well, limiting opposing QB’s to just 180 yards on 52% passing. Offensively, the Ravens have been much better than the team which had a breakout season in 2006, averaging 24.6 ppg on the road. While Flacco has had a remarkable rookie season, he went just 11-for-28 for 115 yards and two interceptions as the Ravens failed to score a touchdown in Pittsburgh. If you think Baltimore can bounce back from one of its worst offensive performance of the season, bet the Ravens at +5 at Bookmaker and receive a 20% cash sign up bonus.

The good news for Baltimore this week is that it does not have to face the NFL’s best defense again. The bad news is that they are coming up against a Cowboys team which just beat a New York Giants team that defeated the Ravens by 20 points back on November 16th. Since QB Tony Romo’s return, the Cowboys have been beating the NFL odds on a consistent basis. Dallas is 4-1 straight up and against the number in its last five games and none was bigger than its last win against arguably the best team in the NFC. Dallas has been strong at home all season long with a 6-1 mark and its big win over the Giants allowed the Cowboys to laugh in the face of the controversy the media had stirred up all week long surrounding Terrell Owens and Tonry Romo. T.O.’s exact words were “winning cures a lot.” In a tight NFC East, the Cowboys know they can ill-afford to lose a game the rest of the way out. The Cowboys have been one of the strongest home teams in the NFL all season, winning by an average score of 28.3 to 19. Fortunately for them, they face a Ravens team which has given its opponents more wiggle room on the road, allowing 20 ppg away from home compared to the 15.2 they have allowed in all games on the season. If you think Dallas can keep riding high, bet the Cowboys at -5 at Bookmaker.

Make sure you’re playing Jimmy Boyd’s red hot NFL picks for the most winners in Week 16 NFL action.

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