Denver Broncos vs. Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders will face off against the Denver Broncos in Week 12 of the NFL season. As one of Week 12’s eight divisional matchups, this game could have some widespread implications in a close race for the AFC Wild Card spots.
Denver lost 20-17 at home to the Cincinnati Bengals last week, their sixth-straight loss after starting the season 3-1. The Raiders also lost in Week 11, 33-8 to the New England Patriots in Mexico City.
Keys to Victory
The Broncos will need to find a way to produce on offense, which has been a struggle during this six-week losing streak. Since Week 3, Denver’s offense has only scored over 20 points once and that was during a 51-23 blowout loss to Philadelphia Eagles, who clearly took their foot off the gas as the Broncos scored 14 of their points in the final ten minutes of the game. Paxton Lynch will be getting the starting nod at quarterback with the hope of turning around the offense. Still, Lynch is 1-1 as a career starter and the Broncos offense seems lost enough that it might be too late.
The Raiders will need to find ways to produce against a talented Denver defense. Denver ranks fifth in passing yards allowed and fourth in rushing yards allowed but only 27th in points scored. If the Raiders can produce points, which was a major struggle last week against the Patriots, that should be all it takes to secure this game.
Betting Odds
Point Spread: Oakland -4.5
Moneyline: Oakland -235, Denver +195
Over/Under: 43.5
Prediction
The Raiders find themselves two games behind the Kansas City Chiefs for first place in the AFC West and the Broncos are three games behind. Still, with the Chiefs losing four of their last five games it is hard to say anyone should be counted out in this division.
The Raiders have already defeated the Chiefs once but have also lost to the Broncos, so the tiebreakers in the division are also still up for grabs. The Broncos have won ten of the last twelve games against the Raiders dating back to 2011, but with a huge question at quarterback, it will be difficult to extend the streak this week.
Final Score: Oakland Raiders: 24, Denver Broncos: 10