Den/Oak under 41 -108
Denver is without best wr Marshall and Jackson has been hampered with an ankle injury and is likely not 100%. Oakland has bolstered their secondary this year and should be fairly solid. Stokley can be a viable threat but Oakland matches up decent in the secondary. I don't see them having too much of a problem limiting Cutler in the passing game. With their wr core of for this game I look for Denver to control the clock with their running game which is solid year in and year out. I find it vital for them not to get down early with their limited big play ability. Denver has 2 of the best cover corners in the game with Bly and Baily. Curry is a decent threat but I don't see the Raiders testing Bly and Baily too much in this game, especially given Denver's run defense and having Mcfadden/Bush/Fargas in the backfield. DJ Williams is coming off of a monster year and this is his game to prove that he is for real and last year wasn't a fluke. Both teams should improve on defense from last year after giving up 20+ ppg. To me this game personally has smash mouth run down the throat of the opposition written all over it. I don't expect to see more than around 35 pass attempts combined with both teams controlling the game and clock with their running game. |