Raiders vs. Bills: Preview, score prediction for Week 8
By Nick Sparrow
Oakland Raiders vs. Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills will face off against the Oakland Raiders in Week 8 of the NFL season. Both the Bills and Raiders are coming off of big wins last and are looking to keep their momentum. The Raiders defeated AFC West rival Kansas City Chiefs 31-30 last Thursday night thanks to a bizarre end in which they had two more plays after time expired.
Buffalo came close to blowing a home game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After being up 17-6, the Bills suddenly found themselves down 27-20 with less than three minutes left in the fourth quarter. However, thanks to a stellar performance by running back LeSean McCoy and a late Buccaneer fumble, the Bills held on at home to win 30-27.
Which way are these teams headed moving forward? It’s hard to say. However, let’s break down this matchup in Week 8.
Keys to Victory
The Bills have to be happy as McCoy not only scored his first touchdown of the season last week but scored his first two. Buffalo will need McCoy to continue that level of play as they play against a Raiders team that scored 31 points against a good Kansas City defense last week. The Bills passing attack has struggled to get going during their first six games season, ranked 29th in passing yards as they average under 185 yards per game.
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By getting McCoy going early in this game, it generates offense for a Bills team that desperately needs it and keeps the ball away from Oakland offense. Buffalo has been the best rushing team for the last two seasons and it is time they get back to that as we approach the halfway point in the season.
As for Oakland, the Raiders played their best game of their season offensively last week. It is not surprising that a large part of their success was due to a resurgent game from wide receiver Amari Cooper. Oakland has other talented receivers besides Cooper, including the more consistent Michael Crabtree, but it doesn’t seem any of them can carry the offense the way that Cooper did last Thursday night.
Last Thursday, Cooper had 11 receptions for 210 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 19.09 yards per reception. All was not perfect for Cooper, who continued to have drop problems with a catch rate of just 57.9 percent, but it was still enough to get the Raiders to a one-point victory. There is no argument that Raiders offense does not look a million times more effective when Cooper is productive.
Betting Odds
Point Spread: Buffalo -2.5
Moneyline: Buffalo -140, Oakland +120
Over/Under: 45
All betting odds provided by BookMaker via Sportsbook Review
Next: NFL Week 8: One burning question for each team
Prediction
This game could have big implications in the AFC playoff race. The Bills currently ranks as the top AFC Wild Card, with the Raiders just a game and a half behind them. Whoever wins this game will immediately help their playoff cause tremendously as not only will they improve their record over another Wild Card contender but get the tiebreaker against them.
Final Score: Oakland Raiders: 25, Buffalo Bills: 21