The Raiders entered this season riding an eight-game winning streak over the Broncos.
Denver ended its losing streak to the Raiders in emphatic fashion in a 34-18 victory in Week 5, and bettors are all over the Broncos to win and cover again in Sunday’s AFC West rematch at Allegiant Stadium.
Denver is a consensus 6-point favorite after the look-ahead line was 3 at the Westgate SuperBook and reopened at 4 after the Broncos blew out the Falcons 38-6 on Sunday and the Raiders lost 34-19 to the Dolphins.
“There has been an avalanche of money on the Broncos,” Westgate vice president of race and sports John Murray said. “The most one-way game of the week is Denver. The Raiders are going to be our biggest sweat. Denver is a hot team right now. They’re playing some really good football, and everybody is going to bet on the Broncos.”
The action also has been one-sided in favor of the Broncos at Station Sports, where 82 percent of the tickets are on Denver.
“That’s really surprising, but the Raiders are just a team right now trending the wrong way, though they’ve had a history of success against the Broncos in recent years,” Red Rock Resort sportsbook director Chuck Esposito said. “We’re clearly going to be Raiders fans.”
The consensus total is 41, with the number at 41½ at Circa Sports. The Raiders are on a 7-2 over run, and the Broncos are on a 5-2 over run.
The Raiders (2-8, 4-6 ATS) are tied for the NFL’s second-worst record behind the Jaguars (2-9) and have the league’s longest losing streak at six games.
Denver (6-5, 8-3 ATS) is one of the NFL’s biggest surprises. It already has topped its season win total of 5½ and is tied for the second-best spread record in the league behind the Lions (8-2 ATS).
Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix has thrown for 14 touchdowns and only two interceptions in his last nine games. The former Oregon star is the +325 second choice at Circa to win the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year award behind Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels, the heavy -510 favorite.
“Bo Nix has played great, they’re really good defensively, they’ve got a good offensive line and a coach (Sean Payton) that has a quarterback very similar to what he had (in New Orleans) in Drew Brees,” Esposito said. “These teams are definitely trending in opposite directions.”
Best bets
Professional sports bettor Jeff Whitelaw bet on the Broncos at -4 on Monday before the line shot up Wednesday to 6.
“I don’t really see anything at this number (-6). This is about what I made it,” he said. “These teams are going in different directions. Denver is playing really well, and their defense is very, very good. The Raiders just seem to be in total disarray.”
Three-time Review-Journal NFL Challenge champion Doug Fitz, 32-23 ATS in the contest this season, made the Raiders +6 his best bet this week.
“The Raiders showed some signs of life on offense in offensive coordinator Scott Turner’s first game replacing Luke Getsy,” said Fitz (Systemplays.com). “The Broncos are obviously the better team, but this is a home division game for the Raiders.
“I think the Raiders keep this close, and I expect a bit of a letdown from the Broncos after their dominant performance last week against a good Falcons’ team.”
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on X.
Player to score first touchdown
At Caesars Sportsbook
Up to 30-1
Javonte Williams 6-1
Courtland Sutton 7-1
Brock Bowers 11-1
Jakobi Meyers 11-1
Devaughn Vele 12-1
Audric Estime 12-1
Bo Nix 13-1
Tre Tucker 14-1
Jaleel McLaughlin 17-1
Marvin Mims, Jr. 18-1
Lil’Jordan Humphrey 18-1
Troy Franklin 19-1
Adam Trautman 21-1
DJ Turner 22-1
Gardner Minshew 30-1
