Here we go, the Las Vegas Raiders’ first primetime game of the season has finally arrived. Monday night, the Raiders travel to Arrowhead to take on the Kansas City Chiefs. This could get ugly, but we can at least try to keep making money along the way. All lines are via DraftKings as of Sunday morning.
Smartest Bet: OVER 51.5 (-110)
I really like this line a lot. This feels low by a couple of points. The Chiefs’ offense is looking great this year, as always. The Raiders’ defense is at least average this year but is unlikely to keep Kansas City from putting up at least 30 points. On the other hand, the Raiders’ offense is slowly getting it together. If they have to try to keep pace with Patrick Mahomes and company, they will likely be over 20. If I had to predict how this game would turn out, the safest guess would be something like a 31-23 Kansas City win. Not that the Raiders don’t have a path to victory. They do, which we will talk about later. However, the most likely scenario is that the Chiefs put up a lot of points, get a lead, and the Raiders pull within a score late. I like the OVER to 53 points.
Safest Bet: Daniel Carlson OVER 1.5 Made Field Goals (+100)
Go snatch this up right now! Carlson hasn’t made less than two field goals in a game since Week 15 of last season. It is very difficult to see a scenario in which that happens again on Monday night. The Raiders have struggled to finish drives once again this season. Plus, Carlson has been automatic as usual. This line has to be some sort of mistake, especially with the +100 odds. Just absolutely insane. Grab it before it changes.
Best Risky Bet: Raiders Moneyline (+265)
Remember what I said earlier? The Las Vegas Raiders do have a path here. They seemed to figure something out with the run game last week against Denver. If Josh McDaniels can continue to get Josh Jacobs going in Kansas City, the Raiders have a shot. The keys for Las Vegas will be to dominate possession on the ground, shorten the game, finish drives, and get a couple big plays on defense. If all of that happens, the Raiders can pull this off. One piece of advice if you take this bet: it doesn’t pair well with the OVER. Any scenario in which the Raiders win this week likely involves neither team breaking 30 points.
The Raiders Need To Keep It Simple, Feed Josh Jacobs In Week 5
*Top Photo: Heidi Fang/Las Vegas Review-Journal