Welcome to a special Bye Week Edition of Gamble Ramble! The Las Vegas Raiders’ bye week can typically be a boring time for Raider Nation. Fear not, we have some bets to keep things interesting. Here are five gambling picks for this week. All lines are via Draft Kings as of Saturday morning.
The Las Vegas Raiders are off, but you can still make some money this Sunday…
New York Jets @ Green Bay Packers: Jets +7 (-110)
Giving up a touchdown in the NFL is a lot. There is so little separating each team. The New York Jets have been playing some quality football as of late. The Green Bay Packers, on the other hand, have not. They have had just enough talent to get by inferior opponents despite sloppy play. The Jets could be coming to Green Bay at just the right time to steal a win, or at the very least, to keep it close. Some outlets have this spread at 7.5. If you can jump on that, seven should be enough, but the extra half point saves you from a PUSH if the Jets do indeed lose by exactly a touchdown.
Arizona Cardinals @ Seattle Seahawks: Seahawks Moneyline (+115)
I love Seattle as a home ‘dog. Geno Smith is playing the best football of his career, and the offense has found a good groove. It is only a matter of time before Pete Carroll has that defense playing better complementary football. Facing an Arizona Cardinals offense that has yet to score 30 all season, could be just the springboard they need. The only concern is that divisional games can sometimes become statistical anomalies due to familiarity between the teams. That causes these games to become more like toss-ups. Even then, you have to like Seattle getting +115 odds.
Minnesota Vikings @ Miami Dolphins: Vikings -3 (-115)
Given the final injury report, there is a very real chance of third string quarterback Skylar Thompson starting this game for Miami. Even in the best-case scenario, they get a banged-up Teddy Bridgewater. That could mean for some tough sledding against a Vikings team that might(?) be pretty good. With a healthy Tua, I would lean towards the Dolphins here. Given this train wreck of a situation, I like Minnesota enough to lay the points.
Gamble Ramble: Raiders’ Bye Week Edition
Carolina Panthers @ Los Angeles Rams: Panthers +10 (-115)
The Carolina Panthers have that new head coach smell. Head coaches getting fired usually gives teams a shot in the arm heading into the next game. Expect Carolina to put up much more of a fight than they have in their last two games, which both resulted in double-digit losses. On the other hand, the Rams’ Super Bowl hangover is officially real. They have been banged up with injuries, have had trouble replacing tackle Andrew Whitworth, and are struggling to incorporate Allen Robinson into the offense. Los Angeles is also coming off of two consecutive losses. Expect the Rams to win this game, because they have to, but it will be close. Take the points.
Buffalo Bills @ Kansas City Chiefs: Bills -2.5 (-115)
The Chiefs are not okay. Las Vegas Raiders exposed some pretty serious defensive flaws, and the offense is not nearly as explosive as in years past. Buffalo, on the other hand, looks fantastic. The defense makes enough plays to complement a great offense. One big thing that the Chiefs showed on Monday night, was that their defense offers opposing quarterbacks’ ample room to run. Derek Carr had several opportunities to take off but opted for last second check-downs instead. Josh Allen will not be so kind. He will torch Kansas City with his legs. If they begin to spy him more, that is just more time for him go through his progressions and more time for Stefon Diggs, Gabe Davis, and Dawson Knox to get open. This is probably the worst possible matchup for the Chiefs. I like the Bills to cover, comfortably.
Don’t worry, the Las Vegas Raiders will be back next week.
Gamble Ramble: Betting the Raiders in Week 5 Against the Chiefs
*Top Photo: Doug Murray/Icon Sports Wire via Getty Images