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Denver Broncos vs. Oakland Raiders Week 17 Betting Predictions & Preview

Broncos vs Raiders NFL Betting?

Broncos Look to Wrap Up Home Field Sunday Versus Lowly Oakland

The Oakland Raiders will attempt to close out a miserable 2013 campaign in style Sunday when they host a banged up Denver Broncos team that will be without Vonn Miller on defense and perhaps Wes Welker again on offense. Oakland has been terrible the last half of the season and they did lose 37-21 to Denver in September.

Denver (12-3) at Oakland (4-11)
When: 4:25 PM ET, Sunday, December 29, 2013
Where: O.co Coliseum, Oakland, California
Broadcast: CBS
Broncos vs. Raiders Betting Lines
Denver Broncos -12 -110 Ov 53½ -110
Oakland Raiders +12 -110 Un 53½ -110
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Since that time Denver has gotten better while the Raiders have gotten worse.

Injuries are a reality for any team in the NFL but the Broncos are in a particularly precarious position after losing arguably their best defensive player Vonn Miller last week for the season. He joins safety Rahim Moore (leg), defensive linemen Kevin Vickerson (hip) and Derek Wolfe (illness) and offensive lineman Ryan Clady (foot) on the sidelines as well as Wes Welker who practiced Wednesday but still doesn’t look ready to return from a concussion he suffered three weeks ago.

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But as long as you have Peyton Manning, things should be OK. Manning completed 32 of 51 for 400 yards and four touchdowns against the Texans last week to set the all-time season TD mark held by Tom Brady – 51.

Manning has historically done very well against the Raiders as well – he hit on 86.5 percent of his attempts (32 for 37) for 374 yards and three scores in a 37-21 win over visiting Oakland on Sept. 23. Manning has won six in a row against the Raiders dating to his time in Indianapolis and since joining the Broncos, he’s completed 79.3 percent of his passes for an average of 340.7 yards with seven touchdowns and one interception in three meetings – total domination! Perhaps the biggest question is whether or not Manning will play the whole game.

Despite the loss of Welker Manning will have Demaryius Thomas who had 10 catches for 94 yards in the first meeting, Eric Decker who had eight for 133 and a touchdown in that contest and Julius Thomas at his disposal – enviable to say the least.

Manning should be able to rely on a healthy running game as well. Kownshon Moreno has rushed for 1,015 yards and 10 touchdowns and Montee Ball has rushed for 487 yards this year – keeping defenses honest and eating up chunks of yards and time.

Denver brings a very balanced offense to Oakland and it is a good thing – Denver’s defense has been awful all season long. They are allowing 25.7 points and 362.7 yards per game.
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The Oakland Raiders will turn back to Terrelle Pryor despite the claims of his agent that the Raiders are simply setting him up to fail. Pryor has been up and down in his short career – many feel he isn’t quite NFL starting QB material. Pryor completed 68.3 percent of his passes with four touchdowns and two interceptions in his first four starts, including victories in both the team’s home games over that span. He also went 19 of 28 for 281 yards and a score in the loss at Denver.

But Pryor went downhill after that in his next four starts – 50.8 completion percentage, one touchdown and eight picks before missing time with a sprained MCL. Pryor has helped the running game – 527 yards on 7.1 per carry and two touchdowns in his 10 appearances.

Hard to blame the QB situation in Oakland solely for the misery however. The Raiders defense has been bad – a league worst 33.6 points surrendered per game allowed since November 3 and on the season allowing 27.9 points and 357.4 yards.

Week 17 Football Betting Prediction

A few trends to consider:
• DEN are 7-1 ATS in their last 8 games in December.
• DEN are 8-2 ATS vs. a team with a losing record.
• Over is 6-2 in DEN last 8 road games.
• Over is 6-1-1 in OAK last 8 games overall.
• Under is 8-2-1 in OAK last 11 home games.
• Under is 8-3 in OAK last 11 vs. AFC West.
• Road team is 8-2-1 ATS in their last 11 meetings.
• Over is 6-2 in the last 8 meetings.

I don’t know how much Peyton Manning is going to play in this game – there is a chance that Peyton rests for a good part of this game. That said the Raiders and Terrelle Pryor namely have a lot to prove Sunday. Denver’s defense will give up some points – enough to make this game closer than most think.

Pick: Oakland Raiders to cover the 12 1/2 points

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.