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Broncos vs. Ravens Gambling Odds & AFC Divisional Free NFL Pick

Denver vs Baltimore Betting?

Ravens Ride the Ray Lewis Train Into Denver in Divisional Round

The Baltimore Ravens will look to keep the role going and win another for their leader Ray Lewis on Saturday when they take on the Denver Broncos, winners of 11 straight games, in the Divisional Round of the AFC playoffs. These two teams met in Week 15 – a game that ended with an impressive, dominant 34-17 win for the Denver Broncos.

Baltimore Ravens (10-6) vs. Denver Broncos (13-3)
Date/Time: Saturday, January 12, 4:30 PM ET
Venue: Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Broadcast: CBS
Ravens vs. Broncos Betting Lines from Bovada
Spread: Broncos -9 1/2 (+100)
Moneyline: Ravens +340: Broncos -410
Over/Under: 46 points

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Denver, on paper will have the edge in just about every aspect of the game as one of the most balanced teams in the NFL but there is absolutely no substitute for the emotion that the Ravens are bound to bring into what has the potential of being Ray Lewis’s last game as a pro.

It should be interesting to say the least although the odds suggest that momentum will far outweigh emotion in this AFC battle.

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The Baltimore Ravens entered the season as one of the favorites in the AFC but pedestrian play, particularly away from home has taken some luster off this team. Baltimore is coming off an impressive performance – a 24-9 win over Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts in a game in which they allowed zero touchdowns against a very good Colts offense.

The return of Ray Lewis to the lineup cannot be underestimated – the Ravens are a different team when Lewis is on the field.

Baltimore’s offense ended the regular season as the league’s 10 best scoring unit – 24.88 points per game. They had the 15th ranked passing offense and the 11th best rushing attack. But those numbers take a dip when you look at what this offense did on the road in 2012. They were 25th in scoring, 28th in passing with an average of just 179 yards per game and 12th in rushing.

They will be matched up against a Denver defense that was fifth in points against at home this season, second against the run allowing 80.25 yards per game and 4th versus the pass with an average of 187.75 yards per game surrendered. The Ravens looked decent last week against Indianapolis – Ray Rice and Bernard Pierce gained 173 yards, Joe Flacco was good as well and Anquan Boldin looked like an All-Pro.

But that game came on home turf.

As mentioned, Baltimore’s defense rose to the occasion last week and Ray Lewis was the difference. He led the team in tackles against the Colts and acted as a disrupting figure all game long. Despite last week’s effort, the Ravens were 17th against the pass this season and a troubling 20th versus the run.

The Denver Broncos have simply been magical the last three months of the season. Nobody could have predicted Peyton Manning’s comeback season leading to Denver claiming the #1 seed in the AFC. 11 straight wins has Denver as the favorite in the AFC and rightfully so – now they just have to deliver against a team that looked good on both sides of the ball last week. [soliloquy id=”82219″]

Peyton Manning and Denver’s offense has been one of the league’s best since their last loss in Week 5. Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker both ended the season with over 1,000 receiving yards, and the team didn’t miss a beat when Willis McGahee went down with an injury.

The Broncos ended the season as the second best scoring team in the NFL with an average of 30.06 points per game; they were the 5th best passing offense and the leagues’ 16th ranked rushing offense. The Broncos are deep, they are talented and most of all they are as confident as any team left in the playoffs.

Defensively Denver has been as good as there is in the NFL – 3rd against both the run and the pass and 4th in points against.

Vonn Miller, Elvis Dumerville and Champ Bailey have this unit playing standout, cohesive football at the moment – it is hard to imagine a letdown from this group Saturday!

Betting Prediction:

A few trends to consider:

• The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Baltimore’s last 5 games on the road
• Baltimore is 17-8 SU in its last 25 games
• Baltimore is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games when playing Denver
• The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Baltimore’s last 6 games when playing Denver
• Denver is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
• Denver is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
• Denver is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games when playing at home against Baltimore
• The total has gone OVER in 16 of Denver’s last 23 games at home

Denver rolled in the December matchup, which wasn’t as close as the 34-17 final suggests. The Broncos led, 31-3, after three quarters; outgained the Ravens, 350-278; won the time of possession battle, 38 minutes to 21; and had 21 first downs to just 12 for Baltimore. During Denver’s 11 game win streak, no team has come within seven points!

On the road it is hard to trust Joe Flacco – just ask any Fantasy Football fanatic. If the Ravens get down early it will force them to abandon their biggest threat Ray Rice – we’ve seen it happen time and time again. With a balanced offensive attack and a typically stellar defensive effort, Denver wins this one easily. 9 1/2 points may seem a tad high until you take a closer look at the calibre of the Broncos in absolutely every aspect of the game.

Pick: Denver Broncos -9 1/2

By DaveB

Dave B has been a Fantasy Football writer for us for 10 years. A couch potato wannabe, Dave’s insights have been read by 10’s of people for years. He hope’s for world peace + global relaxation. Enjoy and remember only smoke things that are completely natural.