New York Jets (-3) at Oakland Raiders, Total 41 |
New York will face a top-five rushing attack for the second consecutive week, coming off a 32-3 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars as nine-point home favorites. The Jets finished that game with an 80-yard advantage, but were out-gained on the ground by 11 yards.
The team may return to its ground-and-pound ways this week, considering Oakland allowed 8.7 yards a carry last week. New York is averaging just 73 yards a game on the ground, which is significantly lower than Oakland’s 160.5 yards a contest.
The Jets have won four of the last five contests between the two AFC rivals, scoring 23-or-more points in each of the four victories. In the last meeting, New York came away with a 38-0 win as six-point road favorites, rushing for 316 yards and four touchdowns on 54 carries.
This week’s game at Oakland marks the 10th time since 1999 that the Jets have made a visit to the Coliseum to face the Raiders. Overall, the clubs have met 11 times with Oakland winning six of the match ups.
Under head coach Rex Ryan, the Jets have recorded a 15-7 road record, including a 4-2 mark during the preseason. Their 11-5 road record during the regular season is tied for the second-best in the NFL since the start of the 2009 season.
Due to the NFL betting odds in this contest, the Jets are 20-11 ATS versus AFC teams, while posing a 23-17 ATS mark overall.
Oakland will be playing New York and New England in back-to-back weeks, as the two opponents have started the season 2-0 on the year. The Raiders missed out on being one of those teams, failing to hold three different leads, falling 38-35 in Buffalo last week as 3.5-point road underdogs.
The Raiders have actually been out-gained in both contests this year, but managed to come away with a 23-20 win over the Denver Broncos in the opener as three-point road underdogs.
Relying on the run game is likely the game plan in this one, as running back Darren McFadden is having another solid campaign after averaging 111 yards a contest a year ago. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; Darren McFadden is one of the most exciting players in this league, bar none,” said first year head coach Hue Jackson.
On the other side of the ball, Oakland ranks 27th in the league in allowing 127.5 yards on the ground, which could prove troublesome. The Raiders hold a 20-15-2 advantage over the Jets in the regular season series.
One of the important factors in handicapping this game is home-field advantage, as the Raiders have failed to draw as many fans as in year’s past. The season ticket total is below 30,000, but the franchise still anticipates this particular game being sold out.
“I hear we’ve got a sold-out crowd, that’s exciting,” stated Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell. “I think our fans respect the way that we’re playing.”
In making your NFL picks this week, it’s important to note that the Jets betting are 12-5 ATS on the road, while the Raiders are 5-21-2 ATS as an underdog of a field goal or less.
